I Tested an Expert-Backed Jet Lag Plan Before My Destination Race—and I’ve Never Recovered Faster

Even if I don’t always fall asleep in a plane, at least I’m lucky that, at 5’4”, I’m decently compact and can fold myself into a pretzel even in the narrowest economy seat. I’m also quite certain that it’s not an ideal shape to stay in for hours when traveling to a race. My latest one, the SeaWheeze Half Marathon, is on the West Coast in Vancouver, British Columbia, while I’m based on the East Coast in Easton, Pennsylvania—which puts a six-hour flight and three time zones between me and the starting line.I’m from the Czech Republic, a country in central Europe six time zones east of my current home, which I visit at least once a year, so I know from experience just how badly my body reacts to jet lag and air travel. Over the years, I’ve picked up a few tricks, but I never really researched the topic.I decided to go after a PR at this race, so to set myself up for success, I decided to actually prepare this time: I spoke to a run coach, a registered dietitian, and a sleep specialist to figure out all the dos and don’ts while traveling for races.Eat SmartWe probably all know by now that air travel causes dehydration. The cabin air lacks moisture, causing humidity to drop very low and, in turn, your body to lose water quickly. “Staying hydrated is important for air travel, so including foods that have a high water content can help,” says Namrita Brooke, PhD, RDN, an endurance sport coach and sport nutritionist. “For example, before you fly, have a variety of fruits, fresh and grilled/roasted veggies, and lean protein with plenty of fluids.” And always keep a bottle of water with you to help maintain hydration, she adds.In terms of food, from what can be found at airports and still provides higher nutritional quality, Brooke recommends eating chicken, pasta, fruit, nuts, cheese, and yogurt. “Take some energy bars, pretzels, trail mix, rice cakes, and also carbohydrate-based snacks in case you get delayed,” she says.Avoid highly processed and fried foods. And stick to foods you know agree with you. Just as is true about race day, this is not the time to try new things.Once you get to your final destination, “establish your routine in the local time zone as quickly as possible, including sleep and meal times,” Brooke says. “Avoid using too much caffeine as you adjust; focus on hydration, regular meal intake, and reducing stressful variables.”Remember to MoveTo state the obvious, a plane is not exactly movement-friendly. While a bit of walking through the aisle every so often is ideal, there are also small movements you can do while seated. “Calf raises/ankle circles/toe pointing in your seat at 60-to-90-minute intervals will help on long flights,” says Laura Norris, a Seattle-based certified personal trainer and run coach with an MS in applied exercise science. Taking a red-eye? “Most people do not sleep well on [those] flights, but if you do, you should still try to move during waking hours on the flight—especially if in economy.” Norris also recommends wearing compression socks, particularly if there is any family history or personal risk for deep vein thrombosis.After landing, a well-timed shakeout run could be all your legs need. “Most runners will arrive jet-lagged and tired; the first focus should be on getting settled and eating, especially if food was limited on the flight,” says Norris. “If it is early in the day, a shakeout run of about 20 minutes easy may help. However, if it is later in the day, then a shakeout run could disturb sleep, and would be better done the following day—assuming the following day is not race day.” In that case, a quick walk after the flight will be sufficient to help with blood flow through the legs, she adds.Just make sure you don’t overcompensate for all the hours of not moving. Resist the urge to do lots of sightseeing. “Too much time on your feet can be fatiguing, especially with jet lag in the mix,” Norris says. Save the tourist stuff for after the race.And Finally, Prioritize SleepNothing else matters as much as getting enough shuteye. And how much of it you’ll likely get while adjusting to a new time zone has to do with your natural chronotype, your body’s built-in preference for when to sleep and wake up. “Night owls are naturally better at adjusting to new time zones in the westbound direction, and morning larks are better at adjusting when travelling eastward,” says Jeffrey Dormer, MD, PhD, a systems neuroscientist, neurologist, and sleep medicine physician. “Implementing a scheduled shift in your circadian phase ahead of time can make a big difference [if you have] a genetic predisposition for late nights or early mornings.” The rule of thumb is that for every time zone you cross, your circadian rhythm needs a day to adjust, Dormer adds.Cheri D. Mah, a sleep physician and research scientist who specializes in sleep optimization and maximizing performance for elite athletes and sports organizations, spoke about the importance of having a plan for every trip in a 2024 interview on The Diary of a CEO podcast. “Most people have no strategies in place when they travel; they just get onto an airplane, get to a new location and try to adjust when they get there…” Mah said. You want to have at least a strategy for pre-flight, inflight and post-flight, she said. “That will set [you] up better to minimize jetlag and travel fatigue, and ultimately be able to acclimate faster if you’re crossing multiple time zones.”Regarding pre-flight, you should, for example, not panic-pack the night before your departure, as staying up late will interfere with the last good night of sleep you’ll have before traveling. “If you get insufficient sleep before you get onto the airplane, jet lag will be worse, and the travel fatigue can feel much more robust,” Mah said.For flights that cross fewer than four time zones, Dormer recommends starting to operate on the time of your destination as soon as you board. “If you leave at noon and that’s 4 p.m. at your destination, function on the plane and while travelling as if you left at 4 p.m. and adjust your behavior accordingly,” he says, doing what you’d normally do at that time in terms of eating, drinking caffeine, or sleeping. For flights that cross more than five time zones, try to arrive at your destination at the beginning of the day if possible. “This way you can take advantage of sunlight and other circadian cues for wakefulness. The principle is that staying awake is easier than forcing yourself to sleep.”For the time spent on board, Dormer recommends building a travel sleep kit: earplugs, eye mask, noise-canceling headphones, travel pillow, and dress comfortably. “If sleeping on the plane is part of your strategy to adjust to your new location, [use] sleep-promoting cues and avoid wake-promoting cues in the hours leading up to your intended sleep time,” he says, adding that you should avoid excessive light, for example, eating minimally, and reducing exercise. “In all cases, try to avoid alcohol because it not only dehydrates you more than flying does alone, but it also causes imbalances in your gut and nervous system that make adapting to a new time zone more difficult,” he says.Melatonin can be helpful under certain specific guidelines, Dormer says. “If you use 500 micrograms (0.5 mg) or less approximately five hours before your intended sleep time, it can help your natural circadian rhythm shift to the new sleep time,” he says. “It will not make you fall asleep [like prescription Z-drugs], but it will accentuate your natural drives for sleep.” For the supplement to work, you should avoid light and any other activities in those five hours leading up to your intended sleep time, Dormer adds.Have you heard of a “nappuccino”?Power naps and well-timed caffeine are both great ways to recover faster from jet lag—and they work even better when combined. Here’s Mah’s tip: Start by drinking your favorite caffeinated beverage. “The caffeine will start to kick in about 15 minutes, and then you go and take your 20-30 minute power nap,” Mah said. “If you’re able to fall asleep within the 5-10 minutes before the caffeine will start to come on board, then when you wake up after the 20-30 minutes, bam!—both the caffeine and the power nap will have kicked in and there is a research that shows that that’s more effective for alertness and performance improvement for a couple of hours than if you only did the caffeine alone or only did the power nap alone.”In the end, the most important travel tool is light exposure. “Seeking light, that is the most powerful signal to your brain to help shift your body clock,” Mah said, adding that bringing sunglasses helps avoid sunlight at times when it’s not desired.See the ResultsAs I settle into my preferred window seat (so I can co-pilot and check on the plane anytime we lose as little as a foot in altitude), I start my plane routine: I insert active noise cancellation headphones into my ears, take off my shoes and put on my compression socks. I place my big water bottle in the pocket in front of me with the hope I’ll finish it before we land (to the likely annoyance of my next-seat neighbor, who will have to get up every time I need to use the restroom). I start to mentally operate on West Coast time as soon as I buckle up. With that, I’m ready for takeoff.After dropping off my suitcase at the hotel (which I didn’t pack the night before for the first time in my personal traveling history), I take a walk around Stanley Park and stroll in the sun until dusk to help my body communicate to my circadian rhythm that we’re no longer on our home turf.Two days later, not only did I finish my race in 1:49:14 and PR’d, but my legs felt great, my body well adjusted, my mind present and awake. The miles felt effortless.I cannot link my race success purely to my improved travel strategy, but I believe it played a massive role, and I’m ready to apply it to my red-eye flight back home, hoping it’ll do the same wonders when traveling east.Pavlína Černá, an RRCA-certified run coach and cycling enthusiast, has been with Runner’s World, Bicycling, and Popular Mechanics since August 2021. When she doesn’t edit, she writes; when she doesn’t write, she reads or translates. In whatever time she has left, you can find her outside running, riding, or roller-skating to the beat of one of the many audiobooks on her TBL list.