The Jet Lag Playbook - Sleep Like A Champ
by Valerie Gattis
94% = the number of travelers who suffer form jet lag after crossing multiple time zones -- ouch!
Athletes, as with other airline passengers, are plagued by the ill effects of jet lag. Planning to travel across time zones needs to be well visited before an athlete makes final arrangement, for each time zone has its peculiarities!
I remember when I traveled to Hong Kong years ago…..after 21 hours of flying, I disembarked in a time zone that was 13 hours different from what it was on the East Coast. I knew traveling this distance would be disorienting but I had no idea just how badly I would be affected. I was disoriented; every day at just about 11 AM all I wanted to do was sleep. And the effects were not short lived -- 3 days into the trip, I was still "off". I felt tired, jittery my short-term memory was shot -- even more than I can blame on age (HA!). Thanks to a cellular hourglass at the base of the brain, my entire body chemistry was skewed. The pineal gland just above the brain stem, clusters of specialized cells act, like tine 24 hour clock. At what would normally be nighttime, they trigger a flood of hormones that prep the body for sleep. They signal the body temperature to drop, strength and alertness go along with it -- prepariing for the pillow. During the day, when the body is at its warmest, brain and muscles function at their peak. A nerve pathway links the timekeeping cells to the eye, so sunlight is crucial to adapting to new time zones. Until airlines adapt their equipment to mirror sunrises and sunsets of our destinations, understanding the body clock is the key to setting it straight. The Jet Lag Playbook -- Flight Plans THE SHORT HAUL = 3 time zones
NY to LA: You might feel slightly disoriented, but the time change will bother you less because you are heading west. Why? The sun sets later in LA, so you'll likely bunk down later and wake up later -- most people do that every weekend.
The Plan: Set your watch to LA time as soon as you're seated on the plane to ease the shock of gaining three hours. Then, a 20 to 40 minutes nap enroute will refresh you without making you groggy. Try to spend the first day resting. THE MEDIUM HAUL = 7 times zones
Chicago to Rome: When you head eat across the Atlantic, your body clock lags behind the time zones, so you'll have trouble sleeping through the night and staying awake through the day.
The Plan: The morning you arrive, avoid sunlight between 4 AM and 10 AM, and then soak up as much as possible between noon and 6 PM. Though your appetite may drop, load up on pasta at dinner; research shoes that carbohydrates slow your heart rate, lower you body temperature, and promote the productions of sleep-inducing chemicals. THE LONG HAUL = 14 times zones
NY to Tokyo: Jet lag at its worst! You'll crash out in the afternoon but be raring to go at midnight. During the first few day you might feel light headed, clumsy and lethargic.
The Plan: Starting a week before your departure, go to bed and wake up half an hour later each day. On the plane doze during the Tokyo's night; consider a sleeping aide to help you along. If you land during daylight, go for a short run or a brisk walk in the sun. The take five milligrams of melatonin two (2) hours before bed. It's a chemical that triggers your brain's sleep cycle. Know that you will be off-kilter for a few days, so schedule accordingly.
The Competitive Edge with Extra "Z's" With the rise of popularity of the 24-hour ultra-adventure races, sleep (or lack thereof) has come to play an increasingly pivotal role in Athletic performance. Sleep deprivation is well documented in Americans -- we tend to operate on the level of sleep-starved zombies. Little research has been done on the benefits of sleep surplus until recently. At the Stanford Sleep Disorders Clinic, recent studies showed a marked increase in speed, coordination, and energy in athletes who got consistently more rest than on the average control group. About 8.5 hours is typically recommended, but Stanford researcher, Cheri Mah, offers up this challenge: "Get just an extra half hour each night for a week and I bet you'll see a big difference."
Aldan Charles, professional cyclists adds, "Adjusting to the local time zone on a short trip is an amateur mistake. Pros know you need to keep an independent sleep rhythm, or your body clock will never be right."
Tao Berman, extreme kayaker, adds, "Never set an alarm. Our bodies know how much sleep we need."
Stephanie Forte, elite climber, says, "Keep it simple. I make life or death decisions on the spot. I f I'm sleep deprived, the sharpness I need just isn't there. I keep my bedroom really sparse. No TV, no laptop, no distractions." Of course none of this applies to the family of a newborn!
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Taken from National Geographic Adventures Magazine, December 2007/January 2008
Valerie Gattis is a Life Time Endurance Coach.
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