Power Napping Benefits: 10 Shocking Reasons For Taking Small Naps

Let’s face it; we exist in a world that drains us. Not only are 10% of Americans sleep-deprived every night, but many daily stresses also bombard them.

Few of us seem to get a break!

This is where power napping benefits people immensely and can help to drastically mitigate the adverse effects of chronic stress.

While power napping can become abused and an excuse for not taking action, the opposite can also be true.

Here are ten incredible benefits that power napping has that can transform your life. Remember, this applies to healthy power naps, not constant napping that causes laziness.

1. Enhanced Memory

Researchers have discovered and proven that there is a robust correlation between power naps and improved memory.

Power napping benefits your brain by allowing it to consolidate information much more effortlessly.

If you struggle with your memory throughout the day, a good old power nap is an easy way to give your brain the rest that it needs so that it can take in and memorize valuable information.

If you’re learning a new skill and have a lot of information to take in, power napping can drastically increase your ability to “glue” the information to your brain that you just learned.

Researchers from Saarland University effectively demonstrated that their participants that took a power nap had a much higher recall of memorizing words than those that didn’t take a nap.

How long of a power nap is best for memory recall? Generally, about 45 minutes to 1 hour is ideal.

I have personally found that taking a power nap after a study session or learning a skill makes a significant difference in my ability to memorize and remember what I’ve learned.

2. Enhanced Cognitive Abilities

Geniuses throughout history are notorious for crediting their incredible ideas to power naps.

Thomas Edison was famous for taking power naps throughout the day when trying to solve a problem. His everyday routine was to take a short power nap whenever he got stumped on a problem.

He commonly noted that a problem seemed to solve itself after a profound period of rest.

Quick tip for using a power nap for problem-solving: When you take a power nap after a period of frustrating problem solving, completely dismiss the problem from your mind during your nap.

The more you focus on a problem when you’re in a state of stress, you only create more stress and tension in your body. Relaxation and “forgetting” the situation will ironically help you to solve it.

Sleep deprivation is a common cause of brain fog, stress, and poor cognitive abilities.

If you feel like a dummy some days, don’t feel bad. It just means that you lack sleep, have too much stress, or you’re getting improper nutrition.

Power napping is excellent on both stressful and nonstressful days. Utilize it whenever you need a brain lift for enhanced cognitive abilities.

3. Less Stress

Chronic stress is prevalent in the western world. It can be very destructive to your life if it’s excessive, so you need to incorporate at least one break throughout the day.

Power napping is an excellent way to take that much-needed break that your body craves. Use it as an anti-stress tool whenever you feel overwhelmed by the responsibilities of the day.

What’s the ideal napping time for reducing stress? Usually, 20 minutes or so is the sweet spot for reducing stress.

Not only does power napping melt tension from your mind, but it also lowers blood pressure. A lack of sleep has a robust relationship with high blood pressure and many other adverse health effects.

I can’t credit the benefits of taking power naps enough for their ability to reduce stress. Some days, I feel stressed out with various life responsibilities, but then I take a power nap.

After waking from the power nap, I have a fresh new perspective on my day and find that much of the unhealthy stress has vanished. In my experience, a good power nap benefits my mindset immensely!

4. A Faster Reaction Time

A nice long (or short) power nap benefits your mind in so many ways, and your reaction time is one of them.

As a side effect of improved alertness, your reaction time for any given thing will generally improve after a power nap.

If you play sports, a musical instrument, or even clean the house quickly, a power nap is a game-changer for your alertness and reaction time.

Brain fog is the enemy of a fast reaction time. When you get overly stressed and anxious, you lose your ability to react to your surroundings.

The stress makes you get so caught up in your head that you stop being mindful of your environment.

Power napping benefits your reaction time by putting you in a meditative state where you become one with your environment.

If you are a student who needs to react quickly to an assignment or be attentive during a lecture, a quick power nap can help you attain superhuman focus and become present with what you’re learning.

5. Less Dependence on Caffeine

Before ranting about the harmful effects of excessive caffeine, let me first state that I am an enormous coffee enthusiast.

Coffee produces astounding health benefits, but only in the correct amount.

The general recommendation is to consume a maximum of 400 mg of coffee per day. If you drink more than that amount, you’ll increase nervousness, tension and it is not suitable for you at all.

With that said, if you find yourself drinking just a little bit too much coffee, a power nap is what you need.

Caffeine should never be entirely relied on for energy. I recommend drinking it for its health benefits and not for energy. By taking a power nap, you’ll give your body a fantastic energy boost from simple rest.

Don’t underestimate the power of good rest!

What’s the ideal time frame for napping for energy? Generally, about 20 minutes is the recommendation for a quick energy boost.

If you take longer than a 20-minute nap, you risk falling into sleep inertia and entering into a sleep cycle. This can sometimes be beneficial for boosting creativity but not for an energy boost.

6. It May Boost Your Immune System

With the rise of COVID19 and its variants, I think it’s super appropriate to take an extra power nap or two during this time.

A nap isn’t a cure-all or prevention of viruses and diseases, but it certainly helps you minimize the potential risk of getting a dangerous virus or infection.

Sleep deprivation has a direct correlation with a poor immune system. According to Science Daily, a power nap can help to significantly undo the harmful effects of sleep deprivation on your body.

Obesity, diabetes, and depression are just a few health conditions that are related to poor sleep. While a power nap isn’t a cure-all, it can certainly increase your odds of having excellent health and vitality.

7. Reduced Grogginess

Have you ever had a morning where you woke up groggy, in a stressful mood, and didn’t feel ready to tackle the day? Hey, don’t worry. We’ve all been there.

Power napping benefits your energy levels by reducing the grogginess that you woke up with.

I’m a firm believer in the power of listening to your body, and a power nap is an easy, fast solution for helping out a stressed-out body.

The next time that you’re having a gloomy day take a 10 to 20-minute power nap. Research has shown that a quick power nap effectively reduces tiredness, especially from a lack of sleep.

Remember not to take longer than 20 minutes for an energy boost. Taking a power nap that is longer than 30 minutes is associated with increased grogginess.

A power nap for energy is not for weak-willed individuals, so don’t allow your ego to trick you into believing that a power nap equates with poor productivity.

Many of the world’s top companies, such as Google and Uber, have installed napping rooms for their employees!

If the best businesses on Earth recommend it, it’s easy to assume that a power nap has much energetic power.

8. Improves Emotional Wellbeing

A lack of sleep has a strong association with various mood disorders, including depression and anxiety.

Ever had a day where you woke up feeling lethargic and depressed, but you couldn’t explain why? Often, poor quality of sleep is the culprit.

It’s easy to be oblivious to the power that good sleep has over one’s emotional wellbeing, but its control over your emotions is backed by science.

First and foremost, it’s imperative to have very high-quality sleep for your emotional wellbeing.

Power naps should never be used as a substitute for high-quality sleep.

With that said, every person born on this Earth will have a terrible night’s sleep at some point. This is where power napping comes in — to be your “sleep insurance.”

The next time you have a terrible night’s sleep, fear not, for there is almost always time for a good power nap.

Just as you can wake up in a negative state, a power nap benefits your emotional health by putting you in a much more positive state of being.

9. Improved Productivity

Some people believe that power naps are for the weak. However, the opposite is true!

Many of the most powerful, robust people throughout history are famous for taking power naps.

For example, Napoleon Bonaparte was one of the greatest military commanders and often took power naps. The great philosopher Aristotle also took many power naps.

There is a caveat with power naps. If you take several power naps throughout the day or a 2-hour long power nap, then you are hindering your creativity and not increasing it.

Aim for a 20-minute power nap for increased productivity. If you need a creativity boost, an occasional 90-minute power nap is helpful.

Power napping tip: I recommend always to always use a timer for your power naps. When you time your nap, you’re controlling your nap, rather than your nap controlling you.

Start your timer for your power nap, then completely forget all the problems of the day. When the timer sounds off, you will find that your ability to perform well in any endeavor has increased dramatically.

10. Inducing Lasting Relaxation

One of my favorite books is Psycho-Cybernetics by Maxwell Maltz. In Dr. Maltz’s book, he describes the power of relaxation and how it benefits your body in so many ways.

Inducing relaxation through a power nap or another relaxation method is an excellent way to maintain inner peace throughout the day.

Remember, relaxation is like a muscle and can be a conditioned every single day with practice.

Dr. Maltz was a massive advocate of visualizing your goals as well. Taking a power nap is the perfect time to do some visualization, relaxation, or both. Also, you can use visualization to help yourself to relax.

I highly recommend picking up a copy of Psycho-Cybernetics to learn some tremendous mental picturing exercises and learn how to use visualization to induce relaxation.

Over to You!

Ready to kick grogginess in the ass, improve your health, and increase your energy levels? Start implementing power naps into your daily routine to begin experiencing its benefits immediately.

Many people underestimate the various power napping benefits for your health and energy.

You don’t want to be one of those people because most people don’t pursue their dreams and want to master optimized productivity.

I’d love to know how power napping benefits your own life. Share your experiences in the comments below.