Jet lag

I've lost track, but I think I have flown over to Europe and back around 40 times. That includes the 5 times that I bounced back and forth in the past 6 months. So you would think that after so much travel, I would be used to the 8 hour time zone change. Not so much!

My wife Cami, who went over to watch Worlds last week, seems to have no problem with jet lag. When she arrived in Berlin, she adjusted within a day. When we came home, she was able to sleep in until 7am. I, on the other hand, have been waking up between 4:30 and 5 every morning and unable to get back to sleep. Among frequent travelers it is well known that some people adjust well to jet lag and others dont. Unfortunately for me, I have never seemed to adjust well; but at a certain point you just cope with it anyway.

I am still waiting to find out if I will be flying out to Beijing in two weeks. The World Cup Final is in Beijing on the 15th of September. It is the "test event" for the Olympics, meaning that they will use the same venues and staff for the event as for the Olympics. (I think that all sports are required to have a test event prior to the Olympics). If I get the invitation to go, the Olympic Committee will expedite my visa and put me on the same flight as Dennis. If I dont get the invitation to go, I am done for the season and will start my break and preparation for next season.

So back to jet lag. If I fly out to Beijing, it will be the 7th major flight of the past 6 months. Because it takes about a week to adjust each way, I will have spent around 14 of 25 weeks since March jet lagged. (By the way, at about 24 hours per flight, I have spent 2 weeks on airplanes since March as well). It's part of the job as an athlete. And while I can't say I enjoy throwing away 2 weeks of my life to sitting on an airplane, I love what I do and I would not trade it for anything!