For several years I’ve been interested in the idea of polyphasic sleep, which breaks up one’s daily sleeping time into several shorter nap-chunks. This provides results similar to those of a normal “monophase” sleep schedule, but in two to four hours instead of eight. The most obvious benefit of polyphasic sleep is having more time in the day–measured over a lifetime, the difference would be calculated in years–but on a psychological level, it’s just downright sexy to overcome a natural weakness purely by strength of will.
What’s precluded me from doing this in the past has been, ironically, a lack of time. According to all the sources I’ve read, the first 2 weeks (up to a month with the more “hardcore” plans) are a miserable and unproductive time for anyone switching to polyphasic sleep. Until the body changes the way it sleeps, the subject spends less time in deep REM sleep and as a result suffers the effects of sleep deprivation: memory loss, irritability, headaches and hand tremors, among others. I just have not had a long span of time over which I could afford to be a zombie.
That hasn’t changed–my schedule remains the same as it ever was–but my priorities have recently switched, making the prize of more waking hours much more appealing. However, because I can’t sacrifice too much lucidity during the transition, I’m going to start with one of the less radical plans, the Everyman. This consists of one “core” nap of no more than 3 hours, supplemented by 3 or more 20-minute naps spaced throughout the day.
There is really only plan more intense, called the Uberman, which consists of six 20-minute naps taken at regular intervals throughout the day. Good ole Bucky Fuller followed a similar regimen way back in the ’20s, taking a 30-minute nap every 6 hours (Dymaxion sleep). The transition sounds just too rough for me, though, and so I will hold off on that for a future experiment. For comparison, I’ve stolen some graphs from Wikipedia.
My schedule will be as follows:
- one core nap from 11 PM-2 AM
- three catnaps at 7 AM, 1 PM and 6 PM
In addition, I’ll have to avoid caffeine and alcohol as best I can, as these could wake me or tire me at inopportune times. Fortunately I do not smoke and follow a strict and healthful diet, or else I might have been crushed under the weight of sudden abstinence.
My primary concern as I go into this is that the change in my sleep habits will affect my ability to be physically active in my waking life. I ride my bike at least 120 miles and do two sessions of weightlifting at the gym each week, and I would hate if I suddenly had no energy or if I took ages to recover because of this experiment. No source I’ve read has even mentioned the effects vigorous exercise would have on a polyphasic sleeper, and so I am filled with a bit of trepidation. Considering that with four extra hours in the day I’ll likely be exercising even more, this is sure to be tested.
I will take my first core nap tonight. I’ve already tried to get a jump on things by taking the afternoon supplemental nap, but I couldn’t fall asleep. Hopefully that will be easier as it becomes routine.