Naps good or bad?

[EnduranceNinja]

Today is my first day trying to get my self to wake up at 6am so I could get more done in my life. I gotta say I feel drunk-tired like. Something that comes to mind right now is napping. The problem is I don't power nap I take monster naps 2+hrs. I usually try to aviod naps since they end up being too long and I feel I wasted time in my day. Naps in general are they a good idea or not to you? Should I try to use naps or could they ruin my goal of being an early riser? The good news is today I got up at 6am no problem and the next two days I have to work at 530am. So I will have three days of early mornings. It's a start.

[Matthew Shea]

Originally Posted by EnduranceNinja

Should I try to use naps or could they ruin my goal of being an early riser?

They will ruin your goal if you take one of your monster naps. If you limit yourself to 20 minutes, you'll be fine.

I tend to be a monster napper myself and 100% of the time it throws my bedtime off by 2 times the length of the nap. 20 minutes or less and I'm fine, though. I'd say you want to focus on getting to bed at a reasonable time and only napping when you have to pick up some slack. Never more than 20 minutes, though.

[EnduranceNinja]

Ok, I napped but I was smart about it. I only napped about 20 mins. I did this by only giving myself the only option to nap 20 minutes. My wife had to go to work at noon so I made sure to start my nap 20mins till noon. I had to be awake when she leaves to take care of the baby. I feel better like I have a second wind. Matthew I am gonna take your advice and only do small power naps if needed. It will take work like trying to get up at 6am normally but I know I will benefit from this later.

[Cun]

You could try a biphasic sleep cycle.

Your core sleep at night is 4 1/2 hours or even 6.

And you take a 1 1/2 "booster" nap during the late afternoon.

Maybe?

[EnduranceNinja]

I looked into Biphasic sleep cycle. And your suggestion Cun actually sounds good. I will look into that. I will have a two week vacation soon to try it. The booster nap might be hard to on a regular basis due to work.

[Brutha]

I looked into Biphasic sleep cycle. And your suggestion Cun actually sounds good. I will look into that. I will have a two week vacation soon to try it. The booster nap might be hard to on a regular basis due to work.

Then you probably shouldn't do it.
A sleep shedule can only work when your body can adept to it. When you are constantly changing your sleep pattern it doesn't work.

[Calculusaurus]

Originally Posted by EnduranceNinja

Today is my first day trying to get my self to wake up at 6am so I could get more done in my life. I gotta say I feel drunk-tired like. Something that comes to mind right now is napping. The problem is I don't power nap I take monster naps 2+hrs. I usually try to aviod naps since they end up being too long and I feel I wasted time in my day. Naps in general are they a good idea or not to you? Should I try to use naps or could they ruin my goal of being an early riser? The good news is today I got up at 6am no problem and the next two days I have to work at 530am. So I will have three days of early mornings. It's a start.

Naps are good. The 20 minute post-lunch nap is the best. They boost productivity and mental performance. And they won't negatively interfere with your nighttime sleeping in any way (despite a popular misconception).

Try to sleep during the afternoon, when your circadian rhythm takes a dip. This is a a very natural time for your body to nap. It can probably be argued that skipping the afternoon nap is slightly unnatural.