# Adjusting to new time zone when traveling. **URL:** \ **Category:** In My Humble Opinion\ **Created:** [October 7, 2018, 11:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/adjusting-to-new-time-zone-when-traveling/822627 "2018-10-07T23:25:56Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![CastletonSnob](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/7ea924/32.png) [@CastletonSnob](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/CastletonSnob)\ **Post date:** [October 7, 2018, 11:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/adjusting-to-new-time-zone-when-traveling/822627/1 "2018-10-07T23:25:56Z")
In a couple of weeks, I’ll be going to Tennessee, which has a different time zone than Texas, where I’m from. How do you adjust to sleeping in a new time zone? ---
**Author:** ![burpo\_the\_wonder\_mutt](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/burpo_the_wonder_mutt/32/365_2.png) [@burpo\_the\_wonder\_mutt](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/burpo_the_wonder_mutt)\ **Post date:** [October 7, 2018, 11:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/adjusting-to-new-time-zone-when-traveling/822627/2 "2018-10-07T23:30:17Z")
Which area of Tennessee? [Not all of it is Eastern Time Zone.](https://www.google.com/search?q=us+time+zones+map&source=lnms&tbm=isch&sa=X&ved=0ahUKEwjpzordvfXdAhUJMawKHbgPBQ8Q_AUIDigB&biw=807&bih=474#imgrc=bxF53tz27sQl_M:) ---
**Author:** ![CastletonSnob](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/7ea924/32.png) [@CastletonSnob](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/CastletonSnob)\ **Post date:** [October 7, 2018, 11:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/adjusting-to-new-time-zone-when-traveling/822627/3 "2018-10-07T23:30:34Z")
> [@burpo\_the\_wonder\_mutt](#): > > Which area of Tennessee? [Not all of it is Eastern Time Zone.](https://www.google.com/search?q=us+time+zones+map&source=lnms&tbm=isch&sa=X&ved=0ahUKEwjpzordvfXdAhUJMawKHbgPBQ8Q_AUIDigB&biw=807&bih=474#imgrc=bxF53tz27sQl_M:) Cleveland, Tennessee. ---
**Author:** ![burpo\_the\_wonder\_mutt](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/burpo_the_wonder_mutt/32/365_2.png) [@burpo\_the\_wonder\_mutt](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/burpo_the_wonder_mutt)\ **Post date:** [October 7, 2018, 11:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/adjusting-to-new-time-zone-when-traveling/822627/4 "2018-10-07T23:43:12Z")
You won’t have any problem, but you _could_ set your alarm a half hour earlier than usual the first night, then an additional half hour the second night. But then you have to reverse the process when you return to the Lone Star State. ---
**Author:** ![Telemark](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/telemark/32/372_2.png) [@Telemark](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Telemark)\ **Post date:** [October 7, 2018, 11:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/adjusting-to-new-time-zone-when-traveling/822627/5 "2018-10-07T23:49:22Z")
A one hour time zone shift is pretty easy to adapt to. Just go to bed at your normal time in Tennessee and you’ll probably be fine by the next day. ---
**Author:** ![galen\_ubal](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/galen_ubal/32/4440_2.png) [@galen\_ubal](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/galen_ubal)\ **Post date:** [October 7, 2018, 11:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/adjusting-to-new-time-zone-when-traveling/822627/6 "2018-10-07T23:52:32Z")
> [@Telemark](#): > > A one hour time zone shift is pretty easy to adapt to. Just go to bed at your normal time in Tennessee and you’ll probably be fine by the next day. Pretty much this. It’s no different than the switch to or from Daylight Savings Time. Don’t stress, change any timepieces you’re carrying that don’t change automatically, and enjoy your trip. ---
**Author:** ![Gary\_T](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/3ec8ea/32.png) [@Gary\_T](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Gary_T)\ **Post date:** [October 8, 2018, 2:18am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/adjusting-to-new-time-zone-when-traveling/822627/7 "2018-10-08T02:18:32Z")
> [@CastletonSnob](#): > > In a couple of weeks, I’ll be going to Tennessee, which has a different time zone than Texas, where I’m from. How do you adjust to sleeping in a new time zone? Just a one hour difference? Without even thinking about it. Now if you fly several zones away, enough to qualify for jet lag, then you may have to work on it. ---
**Author:** ![Wesley\_Clark](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/wesley_clark/32/20581_2.png) [@Wesley\_Clark](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Wesley_Clark)\ **Post date:** [October 8, 2018, 2:32am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/adjusting-to-new-time-zone-when-traveling/822627/8 "2018-10-08T02:32:41Z")
I’ve never tried it, but some people say that fasting is an effective way to adapt to time zone changes. > **[The Diet Trick That Will Keep Jet Lag at Bay This Thanksgiving](https://www.vogue.com/article/body-clock-jet-lag-fasting-trick-chronobiology-holiday-travel)** > > Harvard sleep expert Clifford Saper, M.D., weighs in on how to outsmart your body clock this holiday travel season. > **[How To Beat Jet Lag Once And For All](https://www.forbes.com/sites/bishopjordan/2016/11/28/how-to-beat-jet-lag/#65e3b2e42426)** > > If you've ever experienced jet lag, you know it's not a fun time, but new research points to the 16-hour fast as a reliable way of beating jet lag once and for all. You fast for 16 hours, then eat a large breakfast during breakfast time in the new time zone. Supposedly it helps your body adapt to the new time zone. But adapting to a 1 or 2 hour change? That doesn’t sound as hard. ---
**Author:** ![Spoons](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/spoons/32/3141_2.png) [@Spoons](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Spoons)\ **Post date:** [October 8, 2018, 3:05am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/adjusting-to-new-time-zone-when-traveling/822627/9 "2018-10-08T03:05:15Z")
> [@Gary\_T](#): > > Just a one hour difference? Without even thinking about it. > > Now if you fly several zones away, enough to qualify for jet lag, then you may have to work on it. A one-hour difference is nothing. Just do what you would normally do. I go from Mountain to Pacific time and back a few times a year (one hour), and it’s no biggie. I have, in the past, covered 12 time zones at once (Toronto, Canada to Perth, Australia), and that was a challenge, but not impossible. You’ll be fine with a one-hour difference from Texas to Tennesee. ---
**Author:** ![Siam\_Sam](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/d78d45/32.png) [@Siam\_Sam](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Siam_Sam)\ **Post date:** [October 8, 2018, 3:11am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/adjusting-to-new-time-zone-when-traveling/822627/10 "2018-10-08T03:11:42Z")
One hour is nothing. I think you have to travel at least three before you start feeling any real effects. Try flying between East or Southeast Asia and New York sometime. That can be brutal. ---
**Author:** ![Tim\_R.Mortiss](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/tim_r.mortiss/32/142_2.png) [@Tim\_R.Mortiss](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Tim_R.Mortiss)\ **Post date:** [October 8, 2018, 4:36am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/adjusting-to-new-time-zone-when-traveling/822627/11 "2018-10-08T04:36:33Z")
A _one hour_ difference? C’mon, do you go to bed within one hour of the same time every day? If not, this should be a piece of cake. For larger differences, I find that booze is the great equalizer. ---
**Author:** ![chappachula](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/d2c977/32.png) [@chappachula](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/chappachula)\ **Post date:** [October 8, 2018, 10:10am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/adjusting-to-new-time-zone-when-traveling/822627/12 "2018-10-08T10:10:54Z")
> [@CastletonSnob](#): > > I’ll be going to Tennessee… How do you adjust Methinks you’re more likely to have a problem adjusting to Tennessee, not to its time zone. 🙂 ---
**Author:** ![Lord\_Feldon](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/lord_feldon/32/341_2.png) [@Lord\_Feldon](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lord_Feldon)\ **Post date:** [October 8, 2018, 10:53am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/adjusting-to-new-time-zone-when-traveling/822627/13 "2018-10-08T10:53:53Z")
I guess I don’t understand how a single hour’s difference is something to adjust to, but even if it’s a big deal for you, are your days going to be so tightly programmed that you can’t just…not change? Follow your normal schedule but an hour “later.” ---
**Author:** ![RealityChuck](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/realitychuck/32/195_2.png) [@RealityChuck](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RealityChuck)\ **Post date:** [October 8, 2018, 11:05am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/adjusting-to-new-time-zone-when-traveling/822627/14 "2018-10-08T11:05:53Z")
A one-hour time zone change = daylight savings time. It’s the same adjustment you make every year. ---
**Author:** ![guizot](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/guizot/32/3636_2.png) [@guizot](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/guizot)\ **Post date:** [October 8, 2018, 11:20am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/adjusting-to-new-time-zone-when-traveling/822627/15 "2018-10-08T11:20:44Z")
Texas effectively already has two time zones already, doesn’t? Going from El Paso to Houston is probably about the same as going to Tennessee. ---
**Author:** ![Wesley\_Clark](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/wesley_clark/32/20581_2.png) [@Wesley\_Clark](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Wesley_Clark)\ **Post date:** [October 8, 2018, 3:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/adjusting-to-new-time-zone-when-traveling/822627/16 "2018-10-08T15:23:33Z")
> [@Lord\_Feldon](#): > > I guess I don’t understand how a single hour’s difference is something to adjust to, but even if it’s a big deal for you, are your days going to be so tightly programmed that you can’t just…not change? Follow your normal schedule but an hour “later.” For me it can be, because I was on the edge of 2 time zones. So even though the hour was only off by 1, the sunrise and sunset was off by about 2 hours. A 2 hour difference in sunrise and sunset can cause some jet lag and fatigue, but it wasn’t unbearable by any means. ---
**Author:** ![Stana\_Claus](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/stana_claus/32/13874_2.png) [@Stana\_Claus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Stana_Claus)\ **Post date:** [October 8, 2018, 3:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/adjusting-to-new-time-zone-when-traveling/822627/17 "2018-10-08T15:40:11Z")
The biggest problem with going from the Central Time Zone to Eastern Time is the change in the television viewing schedule. In Texas, prime time shows run from 7:00 - 10:00pm but in eastern Tennessee they run from 8:00 - 11:00pm. So if you like to watch shows that start at 9:00, end at 10:00, then either watch the news or go to bed right after so you can get up early to go to work, that extra hour really does kind of suck. I personally just watch the later shows a day or two afterwards on demand. And Monday Night Football doesn’t end until close to midnight Eastern Time. Not a problem for me since I quit watching football several years ago. ---
**Author:** ![CookingWithGas](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cookingwithgas/32/485_2.png) [@CookingWithGas](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/CookingWithGas)\ **Post date:** [October 8, 2018, 6:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/adjusting-to-new-time-zone-when-traveling/822627/18 "2018-10-08T18:58:57Z")
> [@galen\_ubal](#): > > It’s no different than the switch to or from Daylight Savings Time. > [@RealityChuck](#): > > A one-hour time zone change = daylight savings time. > > It’s the same adjustment you make every year. It’s not the same, because the sunrise/sunset times are shifted along with the clock when you travel, which doesn’t happen changing to/from DST. Which means that travel time-shifts are \*easier \*than DST changes because your body _wants to_ change. You’ll barely notice an hour, or at very worst it takes a day to adjust. ---
**Author:** ![Pleonast](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/pleonast/32/1183_2.png) [@Pleonast](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Pleonast)\ **Post date:** [October 8, 2018, 8:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/adjusting-to-new-time-zone-when-traveling/822627/19 "2018-10-08T20:09:31Z")
For large changes, you need to let your body know what the new schedule is. 1. Stay in the dark when you should be sleeping. No lights, no electronics. Rest, no exercise, keep your metabolism low. 2. Stay in the light when you should not be sleeping. Full sunlight is best, otherwise bright lights. 3. Stay awake when you should be awake. No naps. 4. Be physically active when you should be awake. Anything to get your heart-rate and breathing up. 5. Eat when you should be eating. Even if you’re not hungry, snack on something with calories. 6. Do not eat when you should not be eating. No food or drink with calories when you should be asleep. Breaking any of those rules will send mixed signals to your body and make the transition longer and more uncomfortable. ---
**Author:** ![RTFirefly](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/c77e96/32.png) [@RTFirefly](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RTFirefly)\ **Post date:** [October 9, 2018, 12:57am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/adjusting-to-new-time-zone-when-traveling/822627/20 "2018-10-09T00:57:17Z")
I’ve got no useful advice to give, because I’ve never had any problem adapting when I travel across several time zones. This has included two trips from Maryland to Hawaii, three to Samara, Russia (several hundred miles east of Moscow), and two other trips to Europe (Netherlands and Italy). Nyaah, nyaah. 🙂 [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/adjusting-to-new-time-zone-when-traveling/822627.md?page=2)