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I came across something interesting this past week. My friend claims that he is able to "power nap" for 10-15 minutes that is equivalent to something crazy like 6 hours of sleep. Curiously, I found out that there were such incidents of these "powe naps" or "catnaps". Here's something wiki has to say about it:
A power nap (sometimes called a catnap) is a short nap, usually 15-20 minutes, coined by Cornell University social psychologist James Maas. It is thought by many to maximize the benefits of sleep versus time. This type of sleep pattern may be associated with polyphasic sleep; however, it is more often used to supplement normal sleep, especially when the sleeper has accumulated a sleep deficit.
Advocates of this sleep pattern recommend various durations for a power nap. Many have a precise time which they say is optimal—usually around 20-35 minutes. People who regularly take power naps usually have a good idea of what duration works best for them. Some people take power naps out of necessity. For example, someone who doesn't get enough sleep at night and is drowsy at work may sleep during his or her lunch break. Others may prefer to regularly take power naps even if their schedule allows a full night's sleep. Importantly, napping skills are trainable and have been shown to become more efficient in more experienced nappers.
The short duration of a power nap prevents nappers from entering Slow-wave sleep. Waking up after a person has entered this deeper state of sleep can result in a phenomenon known as sleep inertia, perhaps causing the person to feel groggy. Research has shown, however, that splashing water on one's face, brief exercise or a shot of caffeine can help decrease the ill effects of sleep inertia.
Does anyone else think this is crazy? I'm sure some of you already knew about this at least to a certain degree, but this kind of skill would be amazing to have, especially on this last week of school with finals. Of course, I'm sure there's a negative side to this.
For those of you who are curious, I found a couple sites with some information about this topic
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Power_nap
http://stress.about.com/od/lowstresslifestyle/a/powernap.htm
And an interesting site that claims to be able to teach power nap...
http://www.gnorb.net/personal-development/20060928/how-to-power-nap/
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i take power naps i am pretty sure
i fall asleep in the subway, wake up, and im not sleepy from waking early anymore ^_^
very interesting that other people can do this too
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I can do it. Nowhere near as refreshing as 8hours sleep, but its more like the equivalent to me anyways of sleeping in half an hour
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Hmm, my main question here then is, is it possible to substitute regular sleep at night with these power naps? If so, is it possible to continue for about a week?
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completly? No way in hell.
I can sometimes get away with 4hours of sleep, but I would say 6hours is the minimum average, maybe 5.
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is awesome32278 Posts
pfff ask about this to the travian guys. Some actually considered doing this to have more time for it.
SOME DID.
confess naow.
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On April 23 2007 19:19 ilovezil wrote:
Hmm, my main question here then is, is it possible to substitute regular sleep at night with these power naps? If so, is it possible to continue for about a week?
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Polyphasic_sleep
It's neat stuff, sounds difficult though.
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Rofl I power nap at school
And I'm ready for the big world after school!
Sigh power napping does have a draw back because my grades are effing horrible now TT_TT
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On April 23 2007 19:22 SonuvBob wrote:Show nested quote +On April 23 2007 19:19 ilovezil wrote:
Hmm, my main question here then is, is it possible to substitute regular sleep at night with these power naps? If so, is it possible to continue for about a week? http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Polyphasic_sleepIt's neat stuff, sounds difficult though.
Haahahaha, and directly from my wiki source too ~_~. Sonuvbob, you are now my personal secretary slave. Any objections?
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My old power nap was a solid 70 minutes. Worked like a charm. Here's my quick, four step program to a solid nap gaurunteed to keep you fresh for the whole day (assuming a decent nights rest)
1) Find a seat in the back of Calc 1
2) Fold arms infront of you, bent 90° at the elbow, left arm over right.
3) Rest head in crook of left elbow and sleep.
4) Wake 5 minutes before end of class (this becomes easier the more you do it)
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what makes it a 'power' nap? just the duration?
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On April 23 2007 19:23 ilovezil wrote:Show nested quote +On April 23 2007 19:22 SonuvBob wrote:On April 23 2007 19:19 ilovezil wrote:
Hmm, my main question here then is, is it possible to substitute regular sleep at night with these power naps? If so, is it possible to continue for about a week? http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Polyphasic_sleepIt's neat stuff, sounds difficult though. Haahahaha, and directly from my wiki source too ~_~. Sonuvbob, you are now my personal secretary. Any objections?
How much does it pay? =/
This guy made a log of his adventures in polyphasic sleeping: http://www.stevepavlina.com/blog/2005/10/polyphasic-sleep/. It's an interesting read, but I don't know how credible he is (he has articles about astral projection too).
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I generally powernap during my 20 minute break
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On April 23 2007 19:26 IdrA wrote:
what makes it a 'power' nap? just the duration?
Yes, if I'm right, it's a usual range of 10 - 30 minutes of sleep that would give you the equivalent of 6-8 hours(?) of sleep. I think it must include your usual night sleep, though which I for some reason thought it wasn't necessary because of the whole "6 hours rest" thing.
EDIT: Sonuvbob, I made a typo, look up to that post again ^_^
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On April 23 2007 19:26 IdrA wrote:
what makes it a 'power' nap? just the duration?
Its short, and you dont go into the full sleep-cycle
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When you're really tired, any time you spend sleeping is very therapeutic since you go straight to REM sleep. This is nothing new to me. Just because Cornell University gives it a catchy name doesn't mean it's somehow amazing.
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I had been doin that for 3 years now, since senior year in high school where a guy in the tennis team taught me this, it works for me great! It get you through the day but it still does not take away a good nite rest.
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A friend of mine tried to do that sleep cycle thing one summer. He tried to set up his sleep schedule so he'd take like 6 20 minute naps each day, claiming that your body eventually gets used to it and will start to go straight into REM sleep immediately after falling asleep.
It failed miserably, and he spent about 3 weeks in a fuckin' awful mood bitching at everyone.
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On April 23 2007 19:30 ilovezil wrote:
EDIT: Sonuvbob, I made a typo, look up to that post again ^_^
My life for Aiur. Not for zil =P
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i try to but i have diffcult falling asleep without a bed.
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EPT
