- Go outside as much as possible, whether it is night or day. This tells the light receptors in our eyes where we are in our 24 hour clock and encourages the body clock to change to the new time zone. During the day, try to avoid wearing sun glasses if outside.
- If we can’t get outside, if it is evening dim the lights as much as possible, and vice versa if it is day.
- Eat according to the new time zone. Carbohydrates make us sleepy. So if it is the evening, eat plenty of starchy carbs. Don’t overdo the sugar since this gets us all excited then makes us crash , which won’t help matters. If it is breakfast time, avoid all carbs, including fruits and fruit juice. So breakfast on protein – meat, fish, eggs, and fats such as avocados and nuts.
- Take a power shower to wake up – so a morning activity. Take a bath to relax, so an evening activity. Do not shower before going to bed at night in the new time zone or you’ll never get to sleep.
- Take melatonin as a supplement in the evening. We produce melatonin at night, so this will encourage the body clock change. Take tyrosine as a supplement in the morning. Tyrosine increases alertness.
- If a nap is needed during the afternoon, do not sleep for more than 20 minutes or we start to produce melatonin too soon. There is nothing wrong with taking a short nap. It is a better thing to do than drink coffee after 4pm, since drinking coffee too late leads to poor quality sleep. The linked blog gives good reasons why coffee is good for you, and the video clip above it is the most wonderful cautionary French song about an excess of coffee. When life gets me down, I just watch this clip and feel much better afterwards.