4 Steps to Avoid Jet Lag

Floral Pajamas // Snooze Eye Mask // Phone Case

If you’re anything like me, you have a difficult time adjusting to time change while traveling on vacation. I am currently traveling in France, which is a 6-hour time difference from Charlotte, and I tried a couple of different tactics during this trip which were helpful in avoiding the dreaded jet lag.

Jet lag is terrible when traveling because it interrupts your sleep patterns and it can make it difficult to have the energy to enjoy your vacation. Follow these tactics below to avoid jet lag and adjust your time clock to your travel destination.

1. Choose your flight in accordance with your travel destination. My personal preference is to choose a flight that allows me to arrive early AM at my final destination because it allows you to have an entire flight to adjust your time clock. Although it is difficult to sleep on a plane, you can generally force yourself to sleep intermittently throughout the night so that you can wake up at the end of your flight feeling rested enough to enjoy your first day of travel. In addition, it maximizes your time at your travel destination while also avoiding hotel costs. Your flight just replaced the cost of your hotel for the night, so it’s great for budgeting as well.
2. As soon as you board your flight, adjust your watch/clock to the time at your final destination. This allows your mind and body the maximum time possible to begin adjusting to your new time zone. Remember, the earlier you begin adjusting, the better. If you’d like you can also begin working your way towards your new time zone by slowly adjusting days before your trip. This will allow for the fastest time zone transition possible.
3. HYDRATE! Drinks lots of water. If there is any tip that I could give you, this one is the most important. Airplanes take outside air and circulate it through the cabin to allow for a clean environment. Unfortunately this also means that the cabin air has less humidity than what our bodies are normally used to, so we naturally adjust by drinking up all the water in our bodies. We all know how important water is to keeping our natural body systems operating, and this includes our internal sleep cycles. Therefore, I recommend you choose water at every “cart break” from the flight attendant.
4. Avoid caffeine AND alcohol. This one is probably the most difficult for me because I always enjoy grabbing my cup of Starbucks coffee as soon as I arrive at the airport. Not to mention, everyone knows a good glass of wine can help you fall asleep. Unfortunately, both also cause dehydration, and for the reasons above, you should avoid them and choose to drink water instead.

Next time you travel to a destination with a large change in time zones, I recommend you try a couple of not all of the tips listed above. I’d love to hear if they helped you avoid jet lag. I know it definitely helped me on my recent trip, and I plan to use them again when I travel back to Charlotte… especially since we get home on Sunday and it’s back to work on Monday! eekkk!

Thanks for stopping by! XoXo…

Shop my Pjs: