> ## Content Index > Fetch the complete content index at: https://blog.annabyang.com/llms.txt > Use this file to discover other available public pages before exploring further. # Power Napping Is a Superpower - URL: https://blog.annabyang.com/power-napping-is-a-superpower/ - Published: 2022-04-13T08:31:10.000Z - Updated: 2026-03-13T09:12:26.000Z - Description: Enjoy the boost to your productivity and brain break. - Author: Anna Burgess Yang - Tags: #30-days-writing, Productivity & Organization, Habits & Goals I used to be jealous of napping people. I’ve watched family members fall asleep in the middle of movies. Seen people taking a snooze on a train. Heck, my kids have even fallen asleep on the floor in the middle of playing. Yet effective napping always seemed elusive for me. If I wanted to nap, I needed to dedicate an enormous chunk of time in my day to the activity… and that wasn’t always possible. I have worked from home for a long time, so napping was technically available to me. But as I looked at my calendar, I could rarely dedicate 2+ hours in the afternoon to napping. I would lie down, and it would usually take at least 30 minutes to fall asleep. Then I figured that I needed at least an hour of nap to feel refreshed. And at least a 30-minute buffer of “wake up” time before my next meeting. My problem lay in the misconception that I needed such a large amount of time for a nap. I’d heard the advice that the best naps are under 30 minutes (with an ideal nap being 10–20 minutes) but I didn’t believe it. Those types of naps seemed to apply to people who could nap anywhere — not someone like me who napped in a bed. I’m happy to admit I was wrong. I’ve learned the beautiful art of power napping and my days are improved as a result. ## Power napping started as a basic need My journey to power napping began as a result of the pandemic. Since I was already a remote employee, my work setup did not change. But what *did* change was having my kids home during the day. Our schools were closed and I suddenly found myself with three new “co-workers,” all under 4 feet tall. I was faced with constant interruptions during the day. My solution to this was waking up around 5:00 a.m. I [used the early morning](https://blog.annabyang.com/early-morning-writing/) quiet to knock out the tasks that required focus. This worked great, but I found that I was exhausted by midday. Going to bed earlier only partially solved the problem. I could have chugged caffeine, but instead I began to reconsider naps. A friend of mine shared that effective power napping came from practice. “Training” the body to power nap wasn’t something I had considered. I’d just assumed that power napping wasn’t in the cards for me since I couldn’t fall asleep quickly. But as an experiment, I developed the following power napping training regimen: - Find a 30-minute window for a power nap - Set a timer for the end of the 30 minutes - Repeat every day for 30 days [Give Yourself Time to Adapt to a New RoutineChange is unavoidable and an adjustment period is necessary.![](https://storage.ghost.io/c/fe/e9/fee9a30d-4c70-4bd2-af95-fe6abc8afd29/content/images/size/w256h256/2024/06/annabyang-logo-dk-blue.png)Anna Burgess YangAnna Burgess Yang![](https://storage.ghost.io/c/fe/e9/fee9a30d-4c70-4bd2-af95-fe6abc8afd29/content/images/2024/06/1-z8jcnikhfuc9nxkkzpjogg-jpeg-2.jpg)](https://blog.annabyang.com/adapt-to-a-new-routine/) ## Power napping became a welcomed break At first, not much happened. I would remain awake for the entire 30 minutes. But eventually, I began to fall asleep — even if it was around minute 25, with my timer startling me awake 5 minutes later. Gradually, I would fall asleep earlier and earlier within that 30-minute window. By the end of 30 days, my body had learned to take a power nap lasting anywhere from 10–20 minutes. I could fall asleep within minutes and often wake before my timer went off. I began to set my timer for 28 minutes so I could fit the nap into a 30-minute break in my day and still make it to a meeting after. Power napping drastically changed my afternoon productivity. Pandemic aside, afternoons have always been a challenge for me if I’ve expended a lot of mental energy in the morning. Power naps give me the boost I need to make my afternoons as productive as my mornings. People are discovering the power of power naps. A 2021 [survey by The Better Sleep Council](https://bettersleep.org/research/sleeping-on-the-job/?ref=blog.annabyang.com) found that 22% of working adults nap during the workday. The rise in remote work has certainly increased the [opportunity for rest](https://annabyang.substack.com/p/lets-talk-about-rest?s=w) and naps. Are there days when I’m not able to fall asleep in the 30-minute window? Absolutely. Sometimes I’ll find my brain is too “on” and I can’t sleep. But even on those days, I appreciate the break in my day. I think of it as a mental recharge. I’m not *doing* anything, so it is still a reprieve from meetings or other tasks. ### Don’t give up on power napping When I take a nap, I do everything that I would do for a longer sleep. I nap in my normal bed (instead of the couch), use a face mask to block out sunlight, and sleep under a weighted blanket. This signals to my body that it is time for sleep. I also make sure to nap at the right time. Because I wake up so early, my power nap needs to occur at *my* midday — which is earlier than most people would nap. By finding that napping sweet spot, I can maximize my afternoon energy. If I wait too long, I find myself dragging and *too* tired. I take a nap before I’ve hit the “exhaustion” point. I’m a [time-blocking fiend](https://blog.annabyang.com/tackle-your-to-do-list-with-time-blocking/), so I will block off the time on my calendar for a nap. I eat an early lunch, then spend some time working, then nap. I use an AI calendar assistant (called [Reclaim](https://reclaim.ai/?ref=blog.annabyang.com)) that will flex my naptime depending on other commitments on my calendar but still keeps the nap within the window I specify. If you’ve tried power napping in the past and found that you couldn’t fall asleep, try again. Use the approach of “training” so that your body learns to sleep in the 30-minute window. Your body and brain will thank you for the rest and refresh in your day. --- *Read more about the future of work, the creator economy, and work-life balance on my* [*Substack*](https://annabyang.substack.com/)*.*