My 6-Day Jetlag Prevention Experiment: Can You Really Beat the Clock?
In six days, I'll be boarding a flight from London to Portland, Oregon. Eight hours behind, 5,000 miles away, and historically guaranteed to leave me feeling like I've been hit by a truck for at least a week.
I've tried everything. The "stay up all night before you fly" approach (disaster). The "just power through it" method (even worse). I've read every article, tried every app, and followed every piece of well-meaning advice from frequent travelers.
Nothing has worked.
But this time, I'm trying something different. Instead of hoping for the best or relying on post-flight damage control, I'm going to attempt something that sounds almost too simple to work: gradually shifting my sleep schedule over six days.
The Problem with Most Jetlag Advice
Here's what frustrates me about typical jetlag guidance: it's either completely impractical ("just adjust your light exposure for three weeks beforehand") or it ignores the science of how our circadian rhythms actually work.
Your body clock isn't just stubborn—it's *biologically* resistant to sudden changes. When you try to force an 8-hour shift overnight, you're essentially asking your brain to ignore millions of years of evolution. No wonder it doesn't work.
The Experiment: Micro-Shifts Over Macro-Shock
Instead of fighting my biology, I'm working with it. Here's my plan:
Current schedule: Sleep 9:30pm - 4:30am (London)
Target schedule: Sleep 8:00pm - 4:00am (Portland local time)
Rather than making this dramatic shift all at once, I'm moving my bedtime 30 minutes earlier each day:
Day 1 (Today): 10:00pm - 5:00am (baseline)
Day 2: 10:30pm - 5:30am (+30 minutes)
Day 3: 11:00pm - 6:00am (+30 minutes)
Day 4: 11:30pm - 6:30am (+30 minutes)
Day 5: 12:00pm - 7:00am (+30 minutes)
Day 6: 12:30pm - 7:30am (+30 minutes)
Day 7 (Portland): UK time: 03:00am - 10:00am (+150 minutes due to time arriving), Portland time: 7pm - 3am
By the time I land in Portland, my body should be primed to go to bed at 7:30pm local time and wake up around 3:30am. Yes, that sounds extreme, but here's the thing: I'll be there alone, working remotely, with zero social obligations. Why fight against my natural early-riser tendencies when I can lean into them?
Why This Might Actually Work
The science behind gradual sleep shifting isn't new. Shift workers have been using similar techniques for decades, and research shows that our circadian clocks can adapt to changes of about 1-2 hours per day without major disruption.
The key is consistency and supporting the shift with other circadian cues:
Light exposure: Immediate bright light when I wake up, dimming lights 2 hours before the new bedtime
Meal timing: Shifting breakfast and dinner to match the new schedule
Temperature: Keeping the bedroom cool (16-18°C) to promote earlier sleep onset
No caffeine after noon: Avoiding anything that might interfere with the earlier bedtime
The Real Test: Will I Actually Stick to It?
Here's where theory meets reality. Going to bed at 7:30pm on a Thursday night when Netflix is calling, when your brain is still wired—that's the real challenge.
But here's what I'm excited about: if this works, I'll land in Portland with a massive head start on each day. While most people are dealing with jetlag and struggling to wake up, I'll be finishing my morning run and settling into focused work by 7am.
I'll be documenting this entire process:
Daily sleep and wake times
Energy levels throughout the day
How difficult it is to fall asleep at the new time
Whether I can actually maintain this schedule
What Success Looks Like
If this works, I should land in Portland on Monday evening and be able to:
Fall asleep by 7:30pm local time on the first night
Wake up naturally around 3:30am local time
Have 3-4 hours for running, exercise, and focused work before most people are even awake
Feel energized instead of jetlagged because my body will already be on this schedule
If it doesn't work... well, at least I'll have some interesting data and a good story about why most jetlag advice is useless.
I'm genuinely curious whether this will work. The skeptical part of me thinks I'm overcomplicating something that's just inherently miserable. But the evidence-based part of me is intrigued by the possibility that small, consistent changes might actually be more powerful than dramatic interventions.
