E3
Everyman 3, or E3, is the original Everyman sleep schedule that was invented by Puredoxyk. It used to be known as the only Everyman schedule, before E2 and E4 were added. Following the naming scheme of polyphasic schedules, E3 has 1 core sleep and 3 naps.[1]
| Everyman 3 | |
|---|---|
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| Total sleep | 4 hours |
| Proposed by | Puredoxyk |
| Difficulty | Hard |
| Specification | 1 core sleep, 1 dawn nap, 1 morning nap, 1 afternoon nap |
History
Puredoxyk named Everyman (now E3) as a less extreme version of Uberman. E3 was proposed as a way to adapt to less sleep more easily, while being more in sync with normal daily life without the need for extreme rigidity in naps in Uberman.
By 2008, it had become popular as the “fallback” for failed Uberman attempts. It was inspired by the first wave of Uberman attempts after Puredoxyk in the early 2000s, and then again starting around 2007 by personal growth blogger Steve Pavlina's grueling adaptation log for Uberman. The repeated experience of Uberman attempters was to crash uncontrollably for several hours, every couple days or so. It made sense, then, to schedule those crashes into a 3-hour core.
There has been changes in E3's scheduling over years. Puredoxyk's original E3 has the core starting near midnight, which is now considered a late core for E3, and is suboptimal for gaining SWS. Currently, the default variant has the core occupy most, if not all of the SWS peak hours.
E3 has been one of the most popular schedules because of its large sleep reduction as well as its feasibility in people's daily lives. Despite the relatively low success rate, its popularity never subsided.
Mechanism
The core sleep on E3, lasting for only ~3-3.5h (depending on scheduling), accounts for only 2 full sleep cycles. 4 hours of daily sleep is considered the bare minimum needed for most people to maintain 90m SWS and REM, with some transitional light sleep.
The most important scheduling tip is having the core cover the SWS peak, by starting it around 21-22 local solar time. Rotating the schedule further is very difficult, and requires strict circadian management. An ideal E3 schedule would have all of the SWS need covered in the core, along with some amount of REM.
Because of the reduced total sleep, each nap on E3 will not sustain wakefulness for a period as long as the naps on E2 or one of the extended variants with higher total sleep. The ideal wake gap from the core to the first nap is anywhere around 3-4h, 4-5h between the first 2 naps, and then up to ~6-7h for the last two wake gaps. In successful adaptations, the first two naps primarily contain REM, and the third nap may also contain mostly light sleep.
Adaptation
E3 is the schedule with the least total sleep that is still considered sustainable for average sleepers. The tight timing of SWS and REM makes the adaptation extremely challenging.
Coming from monophasic sleep, SWS is spread out up to the third sleep cycle, or even in later cycles. When the core is suddenly cut short, SWS wakes may become frequent in the core. This leads to many reported oversleeps. Even worse, the naps can also contain SWS as adaptation progresses, possibly leading to harsh wakes and more potential oversleeps.
Weeks of consistency in sleep times are required to eventually reach an equilibrium of SWS and REM on the schedule, such that the naps will no longer contain SWS, and the core will account for all of the required SWS. The early REM-favored placement of the three naps helps to reinforce this.
Gradual adaptation
It is possible to transition to E3 from E1, E2 or E3-extended by cutting from core and/or adding naps. However, very few sleepers have been able to transition and adapt to E3 from E2. The gradual adaptation often takes too long, with the sleep deprivation dragging out over possibly several months.
Cold turkey
Most successful E3 adaptations come from the cold turkey method. The time it takes to adapt to E3 is potentially shorter than by gradual adaptation method. However, the adaptation to E3 is very harsh compared to E2 or E1, and a failing adaptation due to skipping naps, flexing naps, moving the core sleep and/or underestimation of personal sleep needs can drag out Stage 3 for an extended period of time.
Naptation
Naptation was once a popular way to start an E3 adaptation, but is now advised against. The primary reason is that starting an adaptation with sleep debt increases the difficulty of the adaptation and may lead to oversleeps early on. Instead, fully recovering beforehand is recommended to avoid this. For E3, the shortened core causes sleep deprivation to build up rapidly, and falling asleep in naps be relatively easy to learn, rendering Naptation largely unnecessary.
Reverse gradual adaptation
The reverse gradual adaptation method was also once a popular way to adapt to E3. The strategy is to first attempt Uberman and then jump into E3 after a few days, taking advantage of the large sleep pressure from Uberman. By anticipating the incoming Uberman crash, one can then choose one of the Uberman naps (typically the one around evening hours) to become an E3 core with a desired length of choice (3h or 3.5he). While this method has been discouraged recently, it did have some success over the long history of E3 attempts.
Similar to Naptation, starting an E3 run with pre-existing sleep debt from Uberman is not recommended and potentially only makes adaptation harder/longer than it would otherwise be. A recovery on monophasic sleep after learning to nap on Uberman would be preferred to a direct transition. The body also needs time to fully switch schedules, and rapidly changing sleep patterns will cause significant disruption.
Difficulty
Totaling approximately 4-4.5h of sleep each day, E3 is now considered one of the most difficult schedules that an average adult would be able to adapt to. Even after adapting, most people have reported relatively little flexibility in nap timings compared to the extended variant or E2.
Lifestyle Considerations
With only a short core and three naps to schedule, E3 is relatively convenient for many people. It is particularly suitable for those with flexible work hours or remote jobs. The nap in the afternoon also poses relatively little difficulty for most people to schedule, compared to schedules with a daytime core.
While the default variant usually has little flexibility, the 3.5h core variant has seen more success in flexing. Nap 2 and 3 can be somewhat flexible (<1h forward or back) , and the core to a smaller extent (<30m).
E3 is one of the best schedules for lucid dreaming. Sleepers have reported vivid dreams recall from its naps.
Variants
As a popular schedule with a long history, several variants have been proposed, with some having seen success.
Midnight core
This version was the one originally proposed by Puredoxyk. The core is placed late, after much of the SWS peak has passed. This variant is much more social life-friendly compared to the default.
The first nap is taken before the work day starts and functions like the first nap on E2, with the other 2 naps placed during the day. This scheduling resembles DC2 whose naps are placed at similar hours. There is also a choice of scheduling a 3.5h core for a slightly easier adaptation.
However, this variant has seen a lower success rate compared to the default one. This is largely attributed to the difficulty gaining enough SWS, with SWS possibly seeping into the last nap, causing some extremely difficult wakes in adaptation. Individuals with lower SWS requirements might find this variant more tolerable.
Dawn core
Puredoxyk also adapted to this E3 variant at one point. However, she was also adapted to Uberman before, and her sleep requirements are likely very low. The core around sunrise hours will likely contain relatively little SWS. Alternatively, extreme circadian management will be required to maintain SWS. It is doubtful whether a sleeper with normal SWS requirements would be able to adapt to this E3, as there has been very few successful adaptations. The rotation of the naps also moves the last nap into SWS peak hours, which can be extremely difficult to wake from. This variant should be avoided by most people.
3.5-hour core
The same principles that apply to the 3h core also apply to a 3.5h core. The core sleep still should start by 22-23 to retain a sufficient amount of SWS. If all SWS has been accounted for, the additional 30 minutes will provide REM and/or light sleep, which may help with either gaining enough REM or sustaining wakefulness. This is also a core duration that is popularly used in Segmented sleep and scheduled in the SWS peak for the same purpose. The naps should be placed in the same way as the standard schedule.
The benefits of this variant is the flexibility of the naps and cores. Out of all polyphasic schedules with 4-4.5h total sleep ("Hard" and "Very Hard" category), this schedule is the most flexible.
However, adaptation remains difficult, and the exhausting process of repartitioning will cover the second or third week. Beginners aiming for this variant should start at a safer amount of total sleep, such as with E2 or the extended variant.
Extended
| Everyman 3 extended | |
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| Total sleep | 5 hours 30 minutes |
| Difficulty | Moderate |
| Specification | 1 longer core sleep, 1 dawn nap, 1 morning nap, 1 afternoon nap |
The extended version (often known as E3E), with one extra sleep cycle (90m) added, has seen much success. Today in the Discord, it is one of the most commonly attempted schedules, for the balance of wake time and flexibility it provides.
The ideal scheduling of E3-extended would have a naps in the early morning, noon/early afternoon and late afternoon. The wake gap after core can be between 3 and 4.5 hours, similar to E2. The last nap can be as late as ~18 as long as all SWS is accounted by the core.
Compared to regular or 3.5h core E3, the extended variant leaves time for extra SWS incurred by heavy exercise, and is less likely to hinder muscle building and growth. The adaptation process is also much more forgiving than the regular variant, as it has a much higher total sleep time. The extended core would often allow all SWS to remain intact during adaptation, thus preventing much SWS from seeping into naps or the end of the core. This makes adaptation to this much easier than to regular E3.
Compared to E2, the extra nap allows for more flexibility in nap timings, and reduces the difficulty. The overall sleep pressure on this schedule is much lower than on E3 and slightly lower than on E2. This also means the sleep deprivation incurred by skipping a nap is much lower than on E2.
Pronap
As SWS is most likely covered by the core, a pronap is plausible for this schedule. This has rarely been attempted, though, as E3-extended already has a relatively high total sleep.
Note that pronaps on regular E3 is not recommended, as the 3 or 3.5h cores may not cover all SWS needs when adaptation first begins. Extending the first nap may increase the chance for a SWS wake, even if it is around REM peak. A Pronap is often used for individuals with high REM requirements (>100m).
5-hour core
The 5h core idea from E2 can also be applied to E3-extended. With the total sleep of 6h and a high frequency of sleep, this variant should suit people with high monophasic requirements (~9-9.5h). This one has also not seen many attempts, though.
References
- ↑ Puredoxyk (2013). Ubersleep: Nap-Based Sleep Schedules and the Polyphasic Lifestyle.
