5 ways to nail jet lag
After travelling around the world for 10 years, I think I finally got the jet lag thing down to a science.
Last fall, I flew from NYC -> New Delhi -> Mumbai -> Dubai -> Vancouver -> Calgary, all in less than 10 days, and somehow survived.
This year, I did US -> Australia -> UK -> US in roughly two weeks and nailed it.
This is what it comes down to basically:
Rule 1: Start adjusting BEFORE you leave.
If you’re going west, you need to start staying up 1–2 hours later each night beginning three nights before you leave.
The night before I left for Australia, I stayed up until 6AM and slept as late as I could (about noon).
If you’re going east, start waking up an hour earlier each morning for a few mornings. The day you leave you should be getting up at 3–4AM.
Rule 2: Stick to the right meal times
Once you’re at the airport, only eat meals and sleep at the appropriate time in your destination.
When you eat determines how your body tells time as much as when you sleep, so start changing your mealtimes.
Rule 3: Melatonin.
It’s a life-saver.
Melatonin works with your body’s internal clock by helping regulate body temperature, blood pressure and hormone levels.
Take sleeping pills only in emergencies: Sleeping pills actually prevent your mind from adjusting to the time difference in some ways, but that’s another story.
Rule 4: No naps.
It’s amazing how your mind starts tricking you.
“Oh, I’ll just set an alarm and lay down for 30 min, then it’ll be fine.”
Don’t. F*cking. Do. It.
I can’t tell you how many “quick naps” I’ve taken in Europe that ended up lasting 4–6 hours.
Rule 5: No alcohol until you’re fully adjusted.
A lot of people drink on flights because it helps them fall asleep.
This is a bad idea. Alcohol destroys the quality of your sleep, thus making you more tired.
Wrapping it up
When you travel across time zones of more than two hours it confuses your body’s biorhythm. The more time zones you cross, and the more stops you make, the more challenging it can be.
As a speaker, getting up on stage groggy and disoriented is never a good idea. Make sure you are able to manage your energy levels and factor in roadblocks like jet lag. The above 5 tips can help you adapt your sleep-wake cycle to the new time zone.
Do you have any other tips for surviving jet lag? We’d love to hear them. Contact SpeakerHub here.
Want to read more about international speaking?
- Breaking into the international speaking market: going from local to global
- Be understood when presenting to international audiences
- 10 essential ways you can optimise your work/life balance as an international speaker
- International speaking: working with translators, and how they can help you give a talk in another language
- Professional speaking: how to work with your interpreter
Mark Manson is a business writer and personal development consultant. Manson has worked with thousands of people from more than 20 different countries. He’s addressed audiences from Sydney to New York to Vienna and everywhere in between. Find out more about Mark here or read more of his recent articles.
This was originally posted on SpeakerHub Skillcamp.
