Day 1 of the Great Sleep Experiment (BI-PHASIC)

So I've been reading a lot about sleep recently. I tend to get enough sleep, but like most people I feel lethargic hitting that post-lunch time. I hate waking up early, I'm just not a morning person and I hit snooze a million times. But recently I've been better and better about getting myself to wake up around 9, and definitely before 10. BUT I love my naps. During the middle of the day, they suggest the 20 minute power nap...and that never happens. I tend to do a 30 min, sometimes the dreaded hour, which'll make me groggy. Whoops.

What I've been reading up on is to change from the monophasic, the standard go to bed at say midnight, then wake up at 9, kind of sleep. It's one "bed time" and you sleep that chunk. However, research shows that you tend to cycle every 90 minutes or so because of REM, Rapid Eye Movement, sleep. The good, deep kind of sleep where you have dreams and the time so your brain can categorize your thoughts, experiences, and memories properly as well as heal your body. And if you wake up halfway through, you're going to feel ever more tired than not have napped because your body isn't ready yet.

Given that I love my naps, I think the bi-phasic makes a lot of sense. The goal is to feel more refreshed every day when I wake up. Eventually I can even sleep less, making me more productive (apparently).

So here's the thing. Sleep in cycles of 90 minutes, followed with a nap sometime in the day for 90 minutes. That's it. Tonight for day 1 I will be sleeping 7.5 hours. Then later on I'll take my 1.5 hour nap. Simple? I think so, and if I can do this consistently and feel better, then I'll be really excited.

So wish me luck. Good night.