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How to Take the Perfect Weekend Nap - GQ
What science says about optimizing this important mid-afternoon recovery tool.
In 2011, then-deputy NBA commissioner Adam Silver told the New York Times that “everyone in the league office knows not to call players at 3 p.m.” This is not because 3 p.m. is when NBA players gather for a massive, secret game of knockout, although they should make that happen. It’s because 3 p.m. is known throughout the league as naptime.
Yes, naptime. NBA players—and most professional athletes who play at night, for that matter—cherish their pregame naps. And these are not necessarily quick snoozes, either; the pros measure their naps in hours, not minutes.
Thanks to the unfortunate conditions imposed by late-stage capitalism, daily naps are not an option for most people during the workweek, unless you’re employed by a Silicon Valley tech behemoth that offers to funnel you into cloisters of pods for a recharging period meant to achieve maximum productivity. But the weekends are a different matter. You can pass out after a trip to the gym, or during a mid-Netflix binge, or before a night out on the town—whenever you want, however you want. The question that remains is this: Of these many options, what constitutes the best version of the weekend nap?
What science says about optimizing this important mid-afternoon recovery tool.
In 2011, then-deputy NBA commissioner Adam Silver told the New York Times that “everyone in the league office knows not to call players at 3 p.m.” This is not because 3 p.m. is when NBA players gather for a massive, secret game of knockout, although they should make that happen. It’s because 3 p.m. is known throughout the league as naptime.
Yes, naptime. NBA players—and most professional athletes who play at night, for that matter—cherish their pregame naps. And these are not necessarily quick snoozes, either; the pros measure their naps in hours, not minutes.
Thanks to the unfortunate conditions imposed by late-stage capitalism, daily naps are not an option for most people during the workweek, unless you’re employed by a Silicon Valley tech behemoth that offers to funnel you into cloisters of pods for a recharging period meant to achieve maximum productivity. But the weekends are a different matter. You can pass out after a trip to the gym, or during a mid-Netflix binge, or before a night out on the town—whenever you want, however you want. The question that remains is this: Of these many options, what constitutes the best version of the weekend nap?