How do you see napping as an energy-saver survival strategy?

[For some reason as I get older this topic seems to naturally spring to mind.]

Apex predators and many other aniumals are active in dim light early and late, while at least drowsing in mid-day. Something for us to emulate when the going gets tough?

Thoughts?

Thanks.

when i nap after a big meal i like to think "wolf" and not "snake".
but really,trying to keep a low activity level while waiting for rescue is something i hope i would be able to do.i know just being wind bound while canoe tripping has me walking the shoreline and fretting about the weather.and of course there is the worry about napping when the search plane flew over and you don't have time to do the wave and scream thing..

Hey D,That's a Real Good Topic!You know,That makes Alot of Sense!The only catch is, the design of our eyes,As opposed to The animal predators.I for one,Would be spending the time of day,Focusing on Survival by Priority,But I would Alway's be thinking of it as, Security!Secure my person,secure my survival!Come Night time,I hopefully will have secured my camp enough,to get some sleep!If I were in a Survival situation in say...Africa,Then The Napping Idea,would Definitely have to be implemented,No Question about it!

Well,, we are primates, and we, like most of them, are diurnal. If by napping, you mean "not wasting energy" it makes a lot of sense. Just don't be asleep when the plane flies overhead!

We do function best in daylight hours, collecting pine nuts or whatever.

I'll have to spring that one on the wife. "I'm practicing my survival napping skills." I'm quite sure the boss at work won't buy it. :-)

Conserving energy is very important so forcing yourself to rest at appropriate times would be good strategy.

I've thought about this a bit in the context of my long walk home in the event of EMP. I've concluded that I'd probably wind up walking during the dark hours and sleeping/resting during the day for the simple reason of staying warm. Moving during the coldest hours of the day (night) means I wouldn't need to be carrying polar level insulation to survive the coldest hours while also being inactive. Resting during the heat of the summer day is also an important natural strategy.

The hard part would be forcing yourself to calm down and do it rather than nervously doing something because you feel you must.

It seems to me that the best thing to do is to tailor your plan to the particular situation. But the primary objective is to hoard your strength and all-night sleeping probably won't be possible. A twig snaps, a startled bird flutters and squawks, slow footsteps, and you're wide awake. You need to sleep when you can, and that might be off and on. If you were cold all night, you're still going to be tired, and might find a big rock in the sun, absorbing and reflecting heat, a nice place to sleep during the day.

The large predators often hunt at night, when you would be at a disadvantage. How hungry are they? Just out of hibernation? Injured, having trouble catching meat? Gorging for hibernation? Got cubs to feed?

If it's cold but you have access to some shelter and fire, hunker down at night and do what needs to be done during the day. If you have to travel, you can see better during the day.

If it's desert cold, wide open, no real shelter, maybe walking all night would keep you warmer, and there probably isn't as much to fall over/run into.

Desert heat is best dealt with by limiting movement in the heat of the day, working or walking during the night when cooler.

Rain or snow, slippery in the dark, snow may hide dangerous terrain. And the wetter you get, the colder you get. Stay put if you can.

EMP problems, near-urban areas, weather not an issue, you would have to determine if it would be safer (predatory human-wise) to travel days or nights. You can usually travel faster in daylight, and you can see more. But you might be able to conceal your movements at night.

Like most situations, it depends on what's happening and where you are, and what the local situation is like.

As usual, one plan does not fit all.

Sue

I have found that I can go for very long periods (I have done months at a time in Afghanistan and Iraq) on two 2 hour sleep periods a day. Even with a great deal of physical activity. You do, however, need to have an extended rest period periodically. This is dependent on a number of variables, primarily the individual. You will suffer from an accumulation of stress over time as well.

As a firefighter/EMT I live by the adage "eat til you get tired, then sleep til you get hungry." Kidding aside, as a soldier I learned to sleep whenever you have down time. In a survival situation that may be when you are safe and secure and just waiting for rescue, or when it is too dark to do anything useful or you are weathered-in.
The military and fire/ems world has studied the subject for years. As little as 15 minutes of sleep at a time is helpful but as Montanero intimated, you have to crash eventualy. In Iraq I was fortunate to get a 4 hour and a two hour sleep per day and then get a day once a week to sleep as much as I wanted, usualy 16 hours in two or three segments over 24 or 36 hours.
As a medic in a war zone I found sleep disturbances
to be one of the most common complaints among soldiers. A disaster situation will have a similar effect. You can go a long time on little sleep but judgement is impaired. If you can then "sleep on it" before making major discisions.
When it is safe to sleep then Benadryl or other OTC sleep aids may be helpful. When sleep won't come then simply shutting down and going to your happy place is better than nothing. Ear plugs and a sleep mask or anything to darken your eyes works for me. No heavy meals or heavy excercise within 2 or 3 hours of sleep time. Some people can't use caffiene within 6 hours of sleep time.
One more thing. I can't sleep when I'm freezing so I find myself feeding a fire most of the night and then sleeping in the sun like a turtle on a log during mid day.
leo