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Jet-lag pre-flight plan
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SleepyHero · Toolkit · Card 03 / 12
Jet-lag pre-flight plan.
Two templates: eastward (the hard direction — this one starts 7 days out; with only 2-3 days, start at T-3) and westward (easier — start 3 days out). Shift bedtime toward your destination's clock: 30 min a day going east, an hour a day going west. Light timing matters more than melatonin.
Eastward shift · 7 days · for trips like NYC → London
| Day | Bedtime | Light protocol | Melatonin | Caffeine |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| T-7 | 11:00 PM | Bright AM 7-8am, dim PM 8pm+ | — | Cut by 2pm |
| T-6 | 10:30 PM | Bright AM 6:30-7:30am, dim PM 7:30pm+ | 0.5mg @ 5:30pm | Cut by 1:30pm |
| T-5 | 10:00 PM | Bright AM 6-7am, dim PM 7pm+ | 0.5mg @ 5pm | Cut by 1pm |
| T-4 | 9:30 PM | Bright AM 5:30-6:30am, dim PM 6:30pm+ | 0.5mg @ 4:30pm | Cut by 12:30pm |
| T-3 | 9:00 PM | Bright AM 5-6am, dim PM 6pm+ | 0.5mg @ 4pm | Cut by 12pm |
| T-2 | 8:30 PM | Bright AM 4:30-5:30am, dim PM 5:30pm+ | 0.5mg @ 3:30pm | Cut by 11:30am |
| T-1 | 8:00 PM | Bright AM 4-5am, dim PM 5pm+ | 0.5mg @ 3pm | Cut by 11am |
Westward shift · 3 days · for trips like London → NYC or LA
| Day | Bedtime | Light protocol | Melatonin | Caffeine |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| T-3 | 12:00 AM | Bright PM 8-10pm, dim AM until 9am | — | Normal |
| T-2 | 1:00 AM | Bright PM 9-11pm, dim AM until 10am | — | Normal |
| T-1 | 2:00 AM | Bright PM 10-midnight, dim AM until 11am | — | Normal |
The 3 levers, ranked by effect size: (1) Bright light at the destination’s morning hour — the master clock. (2) Melatonin 0.3–0.5 mg, taken 4–6h before that night’s planned bedtime — shifts the clock without sedation. (3) Meal timing aligned to destination — eat breakfast on destination time the day you board the plane.
Don’t: Take more than the 0.5mg this plan uses for shifting — the times above are set for that dose, and the best time for a larger dose is different. Don’t use sleep aids on the plane unless you’ve tested at home — a bad reaction at 35,000 ft is awful. Don’t drink alcohol on the flight — it fragments the second half of your sleep and cuts REM.
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