The 5 Benefits of Napping

Have you ever taken a midday nap and felt guilty about it? Many people have a stigma that napping is a sign of laziness or weakness, when in actuality, it’s very healthy for your body. In today’s society, it is common to become sleep deprived due to the amount of stress placed on jobs and other responsibilities. Sleep deprivation takes a toll on every person’s body after awhile, and a good way to make up for your lack of sleep is by taking a nap. Sleep experts suggest taking a nap that lasts between 15-30 minutes. A study showed that 20 minutes of sleep during the day is more effective than 20 minutes of extra sleep in the morning. Napping has proven to have many benefits for your health and mind, which are all listed below…

1. Increase Alertness

People who are deprived of sleep are not as alert as they can be during the day. Concentration is definitely impaired, causing people to daydream or become distracted very easily. Taking a power nap helps to enhance one’s focus, which in turn increases productivity whether it be in school or the workplace.

2. Relieve Stress

When a person does not get enough sleep during the night, their body and minds are stressed the following day. Therefore, dozing off for a short period of time during the day helps to relax any tension that may have been caused from missing out on sleep the night before. Reduced stress also helps to create deeper, more relaxed sleep at night. You can expect tossing and turning to

3. Help Your Heart

Napping helps to reduce the risk of death from illnesses such as heart disease or heart attacks. A study performed in Greece found that men who snoozed during the day were at a 30% less risk of encountering such problems. This could be due to the reduction of stress placed on the individuals who caught up on their Z’s during naptime.

4. Boost Your Memory

Many studies have been conducted to see how students perform on tests or quizzes with napping and without it. Results are pretty consistent; those who napped and took the same test that they took with no sleep performed much better. Check out some scholarly articles about the benefits napping has on memory and learning.

5. Get Your Energy Up

How many times during the workday do you tell yourself that you are going to go to the gym later that evening? How many times do you actually go through with it? People who do not make it to the gym after work or during the weekends typically claim they are too tired to do so. But taking short snoozes during the day actually help to increase your energy and fight off your tired feeling. The saying is true: you snooze, you lose… weight.