4 Types of Sleeping Cycles
How many hours of sleep do you get? Contrary to popular belief, sleeping 7-8 hours isnât the only way to get that shut-eye. Geniuses like Leonardo Da Vinci for instance are known for venturing into alternative sleeping cycles that could be correlated to their productivity. Here are four sleeping methods you probably donât know existed.
1. Monophasic Cycle This cycle is where most of us fall under. From the word âmono,â you can guess this sleep cycle consists of one sleep per day, usually at night. But hereâs the stitch: the majority of mammals - except for us human beings - have what we call polyphasic sleep cycles, where they sleep multiple times in a day. The Monophasic Cycle works well for those who work fixed hours a day, like a 9-5 office job. But for the rest, a con to this cycle is that it takes up a one big continuous chunk of your day. If youâre a college student who needs to get a hundred pages of readings done stat, or a worker who needs to clock in at irregular shifts, the following cycles might be interesting for you.
2. Biphasic Cycle Do you like naps? Well youâll like this alternative to a monophasic cycle. While the concept of a siesta is not unfamiliar to us Filipinos, itâs not something thatâs regularly practiced especially among the working class. The Biphasic Cycle consists of a âcore sleepâ of 5 to 6 hours at night, and an hour nap at noon. Research has shown naps increase productivity; if you can find a place to nap between work hours, this could be the cycle for you.
3. Everyman Cycle This is where things get a little more intense. In the Everyman Cycle, sleep consists of 3.5 hours core sleep and three 20 minute naps dispersed throughout the day, with shorter waking periods. Leonardo da Vinci was known for taking twenty minute naps every twenty minutes. While a regular office job probably wonât allow you this schedule, it could be useful for freelancers with no fixed hours, or workers who have irregular shifts.
4. Dymaxion Cycle If none of the previous sleep cycles seem to be quite the one for you, the Dymaxion Cycle consists of four 30 minute naps sandwiched between 6 work hours - clocking in at a total of 2 hours of sleep. However, this only works for a small percent of the population, a chosen few possessing what we call the âDEC2 gene.â This gene means they need only very little sleep to get work done. If this sounds like you, this could be an alternative schedule that could work!
How do you sleep? For me, I prefer sleeping when only needed. :D