Scientists say that a successful midday nap depends on two things: timing and caffeine consumption. Experiments performed at Loughborough University in the UK showed that the sleep-deprived need only a cup of coffee and 15 minutes of shut-eye to feel amazingly refreshed.
- Right before you crash, down a cup of java. The caffeine has to travel through your gastro-intestinal tract, giving you time to nap before it kicks in.
- Close your eyes and relax. Even if you only doze, you'll get what's known as effective microsleep, or momentary lapses of wakefulness.
- Limit your nap to 15 minutes. A half hour can lead to sleep inertia, or the spinning down of the brain's prefrontal cortex, which handles functions like judgment. This gray matter can take 30 minutes to reboot.
I love this type of advice. I'll definitely give this a try.
ReplyDeleteIt sounds great. Have you tried it yet? I would be curious to hear how it goes.
ReplyDeleteI'm trying a modified version where I drink a lot of coffee and sleep most of the day ...
ReplyDelete:-)
I'm sorry, what did you say? I must have dozed off.
ReplyDeleteP.S. One of the disadvantages of not being a real blogger is that I don't get one of those cool personal icons.
This comment has been removed by the author.
ReplyDeleteI prefer to nap between 1 and 2 hours a day, 15mins would never cut it... but that's just me and I'm pregnant with my third child. LOL
ReplyDeletehmm...now if i can only convince my mgr to let me slide a cot under my desk...
ReplyDelete