The impact of daytime napping on athletic performance – A narrative review

Abstract

Due to its physiological and psychological recuperative effects, sleep is an integral part of recovery for human beings and for athletes particularly. 1 Recent recommendations suggest that healthy adults should obtain 7-9 h, 2 while athletes should receive 9-10 h of total sleep to cope with the increased need for recovery. 3 However, research studies that have investigated the effects of nocturnal sleep quantity on athletic performance indicate that due to numerous constraints, athletes do not receive an adequate nighttime sleep. 4 The poor sleep quantity has been attributed to several reasons such as the training schedule and training load, light exposure, nervousness and mood disturbances as well as increases in physical and mental stress. [5][6][7] In addition to the inadequate quantity of sleep, many athletes present low sleep quality. 8,9 For instance, Knufinke et al. 9 showed that sleep efficiency of elite-level athletes was below 85% during 2 out of 7 nights, which is considered the upper limit of poor recovery. 10

Recovery in water polo: how much do we have to know? A systematic review

“…In this sense, factors such as early morning training, increases in training load, trip departure times, jet lag, and altitude can affect athletes’ sleep ( Roberts et al, 2019 ). In turn, Botonis et al (2021b) showed that under conditions of good rest (7–9 hr of sleep), a nap at noon can help athletes improve exercise and cognitive performance after nap and attenuate the performance degradation induced by sleep loss. These same authors ( Botonis et al, 2021b ) highlighted that a long nap (>35–90 min) seemed to provide superior benefits to athlete performance.…”

“…In turn, Botonis et al (2021b) showed that under conditions of good rest (7–9 hr of sleep), a nap at noon can help athletes improve exercise and cognitive performance after nap and attenuate the performance degradation induced by sleep loss. These same authors ( Botonis et al, 2021b ) highlighted that a long nap (>35–90 min) seemed to provide superior benefits to athlete performance. For these reasons, we suggest to take into account active recovery, hydrotherapy, massage, rest and sleep for future WP studies.…”

Longer Nap Duration During Ramadan Observance Positively Impacts 5-m Shuttle Run Test Performance Performed in the Afternoon

“…The authors of these two studies suggested that the lack of changes may be attributed to the relatively short nap duration employed in their investigation. Another factor that might influence the effectiveness of napping on performance outcomes is the time elapsed between the end of napping and the subsequent testing ( Botonis et al, 2021 ). Therefore, enough time should be allowed for participants between the end of napping and the beginning of testing to avert the effects of sleep inertia that might have occurred after napping ( Botonis et al, 2021 ).…”

“…Another factor that might influence the effectiveness of napping on performance outcomes is the time elapsed between the end of napping and the subsequent testing ( Botonis et al, 2021 ). Therefore, enough time should be allowed for participants between the end of napping and the beginning of testing to avert the effects of sleep inertia that might have occurred after napping ( Botonis et al, 2021 ). In the present study, more than 2 h was allowed for participants between the nap and the testing, which was enough to overcome any sleep inertia that might have occurred.…”

Benefits and risks of napping in older adults: A systematic review

“…The effect of daytime napping on performance among physically active people has been the topic of several recent studies (Botonis et al, 2021;Lastella et al, 2021;Souabni et al, 2021). Accordingly, a systematic review of the literature on the effect of daytime napping on cognitive and physical performance among older adults is warranted.…”