I’ve been in China since Thursday evening. I generally do okay, not great, with jet lag because I can sleep on planes, but I always thought it would be great to avoid entirely. This spring, I read about a new approach: a fast. The idea is that you skip eating for 12 to 16 hours before breakfast in your arrival country to signal your brain about the right time to wake up. The idea is that most people skip food after dinner and before breakfast normally.
So: I left the house at 5:30 am on Wednesday. I had breakfast at O’Hare. I bought a sandwich in Seattle and took it on the flight to Beijing. At 7:00 am Beijing time (I moved my watch ahead), I opened the sandwich and ate “breakfast”. Then I went to sleep for seven hours or so. And I swear, I’ve had hardly any jet lag.
I drank water and diet coke as normal.
Anyway, check it out the next time you fly, as you really have nothing to lose!
