Never mind the All Blacks... first Warren’s boys must learn to beat jet lag

THE Lions’ performance on Saturday was blamed on jet lag — Warren Gatland and his squad had 72 hours from landing to the match and had to adapt to an 11-hour time difference. Ben Ryan, who coached Fiji to the Olympic sevens title, gives this insight, written as the Lions landed:

JET LAG AND THE LIONS

I have become very familiar with jet lag over the years. Its power is in its combination of symptoms. You can’t take one tablet to cure it. The good news is that the tour management have some

outstanding people who will have hatched a plan to make sure they minimise the effects.

FOOD, TIME AND WATER

If budget is no issue then I am sure the management will have provided the players with bespoke meals that will have the right contents to combat jet lag and aid sleep. Staying hydrated is an easy one to miss when flying but hitting the H O makes a big difference. Getting into New Zealand’s time zone quickly is also vital, so setting watches to Auckland time and then eating and sleeping at the times you will in New Zealand is another tool that needs to be used.

YOU ARRIVE. WHAT NEXT?

OK, so all of this has been done and you step off the plane. Stay awake until normal bedtime if possible. If you really need a short nap during the day in those first few days then perhaps have an espresso before you have 40 winks. The espresso will help ensure it’s only a power sleep and not a longer one that disrupts your proper sleep.

PREVENTING INJURIES

Your co-ordination and your decision-making are all shot to bits after a long journey. It is not uncommon for teams to lose players from tournaments or matches as a result of trying to run before they can walk in that first week. Even something as simple as picking up your luggage from the airport carousel after 24 hours travelling can be a high risk activity. I have seen a player prolapse a disc doing that. It is advisable in those first few nights to sleep with curtains open so you wake up to the natural light. Do some progressive muscular relaxation before bedtime and avoid computer screens and phones in the hours before you sleep. A small hit of high-quality carbohydrates and fats a few hours before bed will also help you sleep.

HOW ABOUT THE LIONS?

It is inevitable they will not be feeling 100 per cent come the first game. In an ideal world they would have landed a long time before they have done.

DON’T TALK ABOUT IT

It’s a bit like fight club rule No 1. Don’t talk about fight club. Same goes for jet lag. Let the management get on with applying the protocols they will have put in place. Just get on with it. For the full blog, go to: benryan.co.uk/blog