Join
the crowd! It turns out that your kids aren’t the only ones that could use a
nap!
Ronald
Reagan took naps. So did President Kennedy, LBJ, and George H.W. Bush, to name just a few.
Nowadays
with our busy schedules from early morning till late night, not only are we
sometimes short on the hours of sleep, but also on the quality of sleep. Being
constantly on the go can make us toss & turn when we finally hit the sack.
Your Body Has a Built-In Sleep Tracker
Did
you know that your body keeps track of how much sleep you haven’t had?
Your
body basically has a defense mechanism that grabs a little sleep here and a
little sleep there in an attempt to get caught up, and sometimes the smallest
of unplanned catnaps can creep up on you at a very inopportune time!
Remember
that time at the red light when you discover your eyes had been closed for just that few seconds?
When you don’t
get enough sleep, your body MAKES
you get it, one way or the other!
Personally,
I get ticked off at myself for falling
asleep watching a show on my DVR, rewinding it to catch up on what I missed,
then doing the same thing again.The other day I did it 4 times on the same
show!
Study Shows Lowered
Risk of Dying from Heart Disease
In
February 2007, a study at the Harvard School of Public Health that kept track
of napping habits of 23,000 people was published in the “Archives of Internal
Medicine.”
The results showed that taking a regular nap
lowered the chance of dying from heart disease by 37%, while an occasional nap
helped, but by 12%.
Can You Even Imagine Your
Boss Saying, “Go Take a Nap!”
Some
companies are noticing that when employees take advantage of nap time,
these same employees are more productive.
Study Shows Lowered
Risk of Dying from Heart Disease
In
February 2007, a study at the Harvard School of Public Health that kept track
of napping habits of 23,000 people was published in the “Archives of Internal
Medicine.”
The results showed that taking a regular nap
lowered the chance of dying from heart disease by 37%, while an occasional nap
helped, but by 12%.How Long Should You Sleep?
Taking time for even a
5 minute snooze helps,
but catching shuteye for 20 minutes is even
better for increasing alertness & motor performance (typing, etc.)
Napping
for 30 to 60 minutes helps with your memory and decision-making.
And up to 90
minutes helps you to be more creative.
The
best time for a nap is early afternoon unless you get up late in the morning.
If that’s the case, aim for no later than around 4.
Can You Even Imagine Your
Boss Saying, “Go Take a Nap!”
Some
companies are noticing that when employees take advantage of nap time,
these same employees are more productive. Google & Ben & Jerry’s Ice
Cream are two companies that provide nap rooms, and the list is growing.
A 25-year study at the University of Haifa in Israel resulted in nappers doing better than non-nappers at remembering skills they had just mastered.
Grab a Quickie Snooze at
a Spa
You've got great options if you work in Atlanta or New York City! There are actually places you can go to take a nap for a small fee. Check out:
A 25-year study at the University of Haifa in Israel resulted in nappers doing better than non-nappers at remembering skills they had just mastered.
NASA
even studied pilots in 1995 while flying across the Pacific Ocean. One group was
allowed to take a 25-minute nap, and the other not.
The group that didn’t sleep
nodded off up to 5 times during the flight, even during the landing approach. Isn’t that encouraging!
If
your boss isn’t with it yet about the naps, in an effort to grab a few winks try putting on an eye mask &
just kicking back for a few minutes in a comfy chair.
Grab a Quickie Snooze at
a Spa
You've got great options if you work in Atlanta or New York City! There are actually places you can go to take a nap for a small fee. Check out:
·
Rejuvenate
Spas in downtown Atlanta
·
Yelo
Spa in Manhattan,NY
Both are popular with busy people who just need
to recharge during the day.
If
you're lucky enough to work at home, now you don’t have to feel bad if someone catches you all
bundled up for a nap all toasty under a warm blanket.Just be sure to set your
phone alarm or alarm clock to make sure your nap doesn’t ruin your night’s
sleep.
http://www.webmd.com/balance/features/the-secret-and-surprising-power-of-naps
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2008/04/25/AR2008042503118.html
http://swampland.time.com/2011/04/26/memo-to-the-boss-naps-increase-performance/
Sources:
http://www.webmd.com/balance/features/the-secret-and-surprising-power-of-naps
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2008/04/25/AR2008042503118.html
http://swampland.time.com/2011/04/26/memo-to-the-boss-naps-increase-performance/