In making my way cross continent from Melbourne, Australia to Washington DC, USA, I somehow decided to go the long way around via Dubai (if you look at the map, the route looks somewhat like two thirds of a triangle, bypassing South East Asia and parts of Europe). On top of that, common long-haul gripes including cramped seats, neighbour who leans over to one side when sleeping, crying babies and elbow-grazing trolleys all somehow ended up on my flight. All up I spent 38 hours in transit including a 10-hour stopover - and somehow I arrived at my destination as a sane person!
Ironically, during my time in transit I started putting together this list of tips for surviving long haul flights. So outlined below, in no particular order, are my top 10 tips for your next cross-continental adventure up in the air:
1. Pre-departure prep
Being on a long haul flight means that your body is in a seated position for long periods of time up in high altitude. Generally this causes circulation problems as our bodies are not designed for sitting so long in this kind of environment. To help keep the blood pumping, I find it helpful to physically prepare for the flight about 48 hours before boarding by doing a mixture of cardio, squats and yoga.
2. Hydrate
The time spent waiting at the gate for boarding call is generally reserved for checking-in on Facebook - but don't forget to also grab a bottle of water for which your future self who is halfway through an overnight flight will thank you for.
3. Neck pillow
Okay so they look a bit dorky when you've got one hooked on your neck at the airport, and they're not the easiest packable item in one's carry-on, but it will make trying to snooze while sitting upright at 30,000 ft in the air a little bit easier, especially to help support your neck.
4. Pyjamas
Bring some comfy clothes to change into, and some comfy socks as well so that you can spend most of the flight with shoes off. Sometimes the airline provides an overnight pack with a pair of socks in it, I like to put these over my comfy socks so that they can act as slippers during the flight and it helps to keep the comfy socks clean.
5. Moisturise
Bloggers tend to recommend a host of products for in-flight moisturising but I find that only 3 essentials are required - travel size Palmers' Cocoa Butter for the body, your normal daily face moisturiser and then lip balm. Some people recommend doing sheet masks during a flight which is great for hydrating your face but I personally find it a bit freaky to sit around other people when I have a mask on or to wake up next to someone who is wearing a face mask during a flight.
6. Headphones
Headphones are great for the dual purpose of noise cancellation and providing better sound quality for in-flight entertainment. Often I find that it is the white noise that disrupts my sleep on a flight (e.g. the constant hum of the engine) so wearing headphones helps to at least minimise some of that white noise. Plus I find that they're a bit more comfortable than ear plugs.
7. Do your routine
Whether it's brushing your teeth, or reading 10 pages of a book. Whatever routine things that you do before bed/upon waking up every day, try and replicate that on the flight. It'll help send cues to your body clock as well as put your mind at ease.
8. Get some sleep
This is a tricky one, but I find that if I can get some sleep, even if it is just in 2-3 hours intervals, it really makes a difference to how I feel upon arrival at the destination. If the flight is in the wee hours of the morning, it is almost worth staying up for the whole night before or taking a short nap instead of getting a full night's sleep. That way you should be tired enough to at least have one snooze by the time you're ready to board your flight. If the flight is late at night, then pump up the activities during that day to help tire yourself out before resting on the flight. For extreme measures, drink something alcoholic during meal service but beware that this strategy is rather dehydrating.
9. Use food to help cue your body block
Eating breakfast at breakfast time and dinner at dinner time will help cue your body clock to make timezone adjustments easier. Even if you not in the mood for in-flight food, still take a few bites and have a beverage so that your body has something to process.
10. Post-flight care
Being in high altitude and cabin pressure over long periods of time inevitably tires out the body, so after landing, as much as I feel like digging into some salty cheesy comfort food, it helps to stick with simple food for that first meal after a flight. If you're travelling, google map your nearest supermarket and get your body started in the new destination with fresh fruit, bit of protein and coconut water for added hydration.
Similarly, even if you feel like just dropping your bags off at the hotel and getting straight into the sightseeing, at least squeeze in a nap first. You'll be surprised at how much your body appreciates that bit of rest.
Then hopefully you should be good to go with barely any jet lag!
xoxo
Photo: Washington Monument against a pastel sky, unedited
Photographed Jan 2016 | Samsung Galaxy S5
Ironically, during my time in transit I started putting together this list of tips for surviving long haul flights. So outlined below, in no particular order, are my top 10 tips for your next cross-continental adventure up in the air:
1. Pre-departure prep
Being on a long haul flight means that your body is in a seated position for long periods of time up in high altitude. Generally this causes circulation problems as our bodies are not designed for sitting so long in this kind of environment. To help keep the blood pumping, I find it helpful to physically prepare for the flight about 48 hours before boarding by doing a mixture of cardio, squats and yoga.
2. Hydrate
The time spent waiting at the gate for boarding call is generally reserved for checking-in on Facebook - but don't forget to also grab a bottle of water for which your future self who is halfway through an overnight flight will thank you for.
3. Neck pillow
Okay so they look a bit dorky when you've got one hooked on your neck at the airport, and they're not the easiest packable item in one's carry-on, but it will make trying to snooze while sitting upright at 30,000 ft in the air a little bit easier, especially to help support your neck.
4. Pyjamas
Bring some comfy clothes to change into, and some comfy socks as well so that you can spend most of the flight with shoes off. Sometimes the airline provides an overnight pack with a pair of socks in it, I like to put these over my comfy socks so that they can act as slippers during the flight and it helps to keep the comfy socks clean.
5. Moisturise
Bloggers tend to recommend a host of products for in-flight moisturising but I find that only 3 essentials are required - travel size Palmers' Cocoa Butter for the body, your normal daily face moisturiser and then lip balm. Some people recommend doing sheet masks during a flight which is great for hydrating your face but I personally find it a bit freaky to sit around other people when I have a mask on or to wake up next to someone who is wearing a face mask during a flight.
6. Headphones
Headphones are great for the dual purpose of noise cancellation and providing better sound quality for in-flight entertainment. Often I find that it is the white noise that disrupts my sleep on a flight (e.g. the constant hum of the engine) so wearing headphones helps to at least minimise some of that white noise. Plus I find that they're a bit more comfortable than ear plugs.
7. Do your routine
Whether it's brushing your teeth, or reading 10 pages of a book. Whatever routine things that you do before bed/upon waking up every day, try and replicate that on the flight. It'll help send cues to your body clock as well as put your mind at ease.
8. Get some sleep
This is a tricky one, but I find that if I can get some sleep, even if it is just in 2-3 hours intervals, it really makes a difference to how I feel upon arrival at the destination. If the flight is in the wee hours of the morning, it is almost worth staying up for the whole night before or taking a short nap instead of getting a full night's sleep. That way you should be tired enough to at least have one snooze by the time you're ready to board your flight. If the flight is late at night, then pump up the activities during that day to help tire yourself out before resting on the flight. For extreme measures, drink something alcoholic during meal service but beware that this strategy is rather dehydrating.
9. Use food to help cue your body block
Eating breakfast at breakfast time and dinner at dinner time will help cue your body clock to make timezone adjustments easier. Even if you not in the mood for in-flight food, still take a few bites and have a beverage so that your body has something to process.
10. Post-flight care
Being in high altitude and cabin pressure over long periods of time inevitably tires out the body, so after landing, as much as I feel like digging into some salty cheesy comfort food, it helps to stick with simple food for that first meal after a flight. If you're travelling, google map your nearest supermarket and get your body started in the new destination with fresh fruit, bit of protein and coconut water for added hydration.
Similarly, even if you feel like just dropping your bags off at the hotel and getting straight into the sightseeing, at least squeeze in a nap first. You'll be surprised at how much your body appreciates that bit of rest.
Then hopefully you should be good to go with barely any jet lag!
xoxo
Photo: Washington Monument against a pastel sky, unedited
Photographed Jan 2016 | Samsung Galaxy S5
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