Nap now to lift more later

We all intuitively know that sleep underpins our performance and most of us understand that patterns in recovery and sleep are closely linked. Maybe more than anyone I know, I currently don’t get enough sleep at night. I love sleep. I used to get 8 solid hours a night and occasionally more, sometimes even adding a nap on top. These days, life doesn’t always allow 7 hours, with 5-6 being more common and rarely unbroken. So I’m always wondering if there are any ways I can make up for it or claw some back…

Can you catch up on sleep?

Poor sleep has been shown to negatively impact strength training (Knowles et al., 2018) and sleep deprivation in general is associated with poor short term health. Beyond using external motivation like training in a group of competitive team mates and ingesting caffeine, naps are recommended as an easy and healthy band aid on bad sleep…

Research would suggest that although not as optimal as a good nights sleep, naps can have a beneficial effect on both energy levels, health and performance. Naps in the region of 10-20mins are suggested to be best as they don’t go into the realms of multiple sleep cycles and risk you waking up feeling worse than before.

It’s suggested (beyond the purpose of general health) that naps can help return performance to more optimal levels but it should come as no surprise that anecdotally the best athletes often sleep 8-10 hours a night, every night. That’s ok if you have nothing to do but train I guess!

I use naps both pro-actively AND retrospectively. If I know I will have a shorter night (baby stuff or a very early start the next day) I’ll try and nap the day before as I usually feel better for it. Now whether that is because I’m a sucker and just trick myself into feeling better or I actually store some ‘sleep credit’ I’ve no idea but either way I’ll take the nap… I also will try to nap the day after a bad nights sleep (even if I pre-slept so to speak).

I know the research most frequently uses 10-30mins but I’ve regularly had anywhere from 5mins to 1hour and very rarely do I feel any worse off.

Placebo? Who cares…

If you have a particularly bad nights sleep before a heavy training session is scheduled, a nap can help make you feel like it’s less likely to go badly due to the sleep. Having that sense of control, even if a placebo effect, can be useful.

Is it the actual sleep or simply being at ‘rest’ that has the positive effect?

Harder to determine is the difference between laying still in a quiet and dark room versus actually being asleep for the benefits on training outcomes. Personally I don’t always manage to get to sleep but 10mins of reduced stimulation from lights, screens, sounds and work demands still seems to help with at least the feelings of training motivation if not the actual loads lifted and performance in the session.

Research

Much of the research on naps pre-exercise has been investigating either running or sprinting so hard to extrapolate directly to weightlifting - although some of the similarities between maximal effort sprinting and exertion to exhaustion can drawn out. Other studies have used grip strength, alertness tests & reaction time. Useful qualities in our sport!

Brotherton et al. (2019) is one example I could find of using resistance training (bench press and leg press) so show practically both the negative effect of sleep deprivation on performance as well as the then positive effect of a 1hr nap on those exercises and on perceived effort.

It appears that not only the length of nap matters, but also how close to training you take it. One study showed that a nap at 1pm didn’t improve a running test at 5pm but naps at 2pm and 3pm did. Once the feeling of ‘sleep inertia’ has worn off it seems best to get in the gym sooner rather than later.

Many studies used 15-30min naps but one review of the literature suggests 35-90min naps are more effective for performance enhancement. Either way it looks like if you get adequate sleep at night, a nap doesn’t then further improve your training - its not a PED! A nap merely helps make up for a sleep debt should you have a bad night.

Ultimately there is a lot of individual difference in timing and duration of napping to see a positive effect on training. Do what works well for you. As with most things in the gym, science can guide us and explain our experiences but you still need to experiment within reason.

Practical advice:

• If you have a bad nights sleep, nap anywhere from 20-90mins based on personal circumstances and preference.

• have your nap around 30-60mins prior to training. Closer if using a ‘caffeine nap’

• a good nights sleep of around 8+hours is obviously preferable to having to chase your tail with naps.

• a nap could be used pre-competition if travel or nerves have disrupted your usual routine.

References:

Abdessalem, R., Boukhris, O., Hsouna, H., Trabelsi, K., Ammar, A., Taheri, M., ... & Chtourou, H. (2019). Effect of napping opportunity at different times of day on vigilance and shuttle run performance. Chronobiology international, 36(10), 1334-1342.

Bird, S. P. (2013). Sleep, recovery, and athletic performance: a brief review and recommendations. Strength & Conditioning Journal, 35(5), 43-47.

Blanchfield, A. W., Lewis-Jones, T. M., Wignall, J. R., Roberts, J. B., & Oliver, S. J. (2018). The influence of an afternoon nap on the endurance performance of trained runners. European journal of sport science, 18(9), 1177-1184.

Botonis, P. G., Koutouvakis, N., & Toubekis, A. G. (2021). The impact of daytime napping on athletic performance–A narrative review. Scandinavian journal of medicine & science in sports, 31(12), 2164-2177. (abstract only)

Brotherton, E. J., Moseley, S. E., Langan-Evans, C., Pullinger, S. A., Robertson, C. M., Burniston, J. G., & Edwards, B. J. (2019). Effects of two nights partial sleep deprivation on an evening submaximal weightlifting performance; are 1 h powernaps useful on the day of competition?. Chronobiology international, 36(3), 407-426.

Keramidas, M. E., Siebenmann, C., Norrbrand, L., Gadefors, M., & Eiken, O. (2018). A brief pre-exercise nap may alleviate physical performance impairments induced by short-term sustained operations with partial sleep deprivation–A field-based study. Chronobiology international, 35(10), 1464-1470.

Knowles, O. E., Drinkwater, E. J., Urwin, C. S., Lamon, S., & Aisbett, B. (2018). Inadequate sleep and muscle strength: Implications for resistance training. Journal of science and medicine in sport, 21(9), 959-968.

Lastella, M., Halson, S. L., Vitale, J. A., Memon, A. R., & Vincent, G. E. (2021). To nap or not to nap? A systematic review evaluating napping behavior in athletes and the impact on various measures of athletic performance. Nature and Science of Sleep, 13, 841.

Reilly T, Edwards B. Altered sleep-wake cycles and physical performance in athletes. Physiol Behav. 2007 Feb 28;90(2-3):274-84.

Waterhouse, J., Atkinson, G., Edwards, B., & Reilly, T. (2007). The role of a short post-lunch nap in improving cognitive, motor, and sprint performance in participants with partial sleep deprivation. Journal of sports sciences, 25(14), 1557-1566. (abstract only)