Sleep and its affect on athletes

Pssssttt...
Last time Chad won a title...he was a "napper", too.

I fall asleep in between motos all the time, I had another pro friend of mine call me out about it asking why I'm tired and if I sleep at all at night because I'm always yawning on the line and napping between motos. I rarely nap during a normal day though so its weird. I think it's because I get all adrenaline'd out for the motos and then crash after the races when I calm down. I could be completely off base but thats my take on it. I know a good power nap always has me feeling prime afterwards. until that night, because I hardly ever sleep well at night after a race.

Rossi does this as well ... (or used to)

I couldn't do that. I've never been a napper. If I fall asleep during the day (rarely) I always feel more tired and worn out when I wake up for the rest of the day.

Yawning on the line is something to do with nerves and not breathing properly.

I often don't sleep very well the night before a race. Partly because I'm so excited but also because I keep telling myself that I need a really good nights sleep to be ready for the race which seems to have the opposite effect and keeps me up all night.

This thread gave me a chuckle.....but I'm a huge fan of naps! haha.

I'm an "evening " type workout kinda guy , and on my workout nights , I like to get home from work , clean up , and lay down for about an hour. When I do that I can get such a better workout when my body has been rested and my mind has been cleared.

There is a scientific research paper on this very same subject that I read like 15yrs ago....and it states something along the lines of that a persons body is set into a specific type of state after a short nap which can / will help in exercise. Even on nights when I'm not working out.....after a good nap I'm much more productive in the evenings doing my chores. Where as if I don't take a nap.....I just kind of slumber around and don't get much done before bed time.

Naps are good for you!

If you cannot nap, it's because your body isn't set up to fall asleep and then wake up before or during REM sleep. It takes about 20 minutes to start REM sleep and then 20 minutes to full exit it. The average person has a 90 minute cycle.
0 minutes fall asleep.
20 minutes begin REM
70 minutes start exiting REM
90 start over. This is when you will easily wake up

I can only fall asleep for 90 minutes at a time. After about 4.5 hours during the night I wake up after each cycle. I wake up around 4:50 when my alarm goes off each morning if I go to bed by 10:40 or so.

Kimi Raikkonenn 30 mins before the start of his first ever F1 race

I love naps. I wish they were more acceptable in our culture. I spend a year on and off working in India and midday naps were common for everyone. From laborer to VP.

I've always called it a power-nap!