Exercise on Airplanes

[jphaas]

Considering that I have an upcoming non-stop flight to Tokyo on Saturday of approximately 14 hours, I was wondering if anyone had some recommendations on how to productively pass that time. I have already decided on using Be Breathed to work on my performace breathing and enhance the duration of my control pause. Also things like wrist circles, elbow circles, ankle circles. I have plenty of time since I usually don't sleep too much on airplanes! Any suggestions will be appreciated!

Thanks!

Jon Haas

[Scott Sonnon]

Jon,

It seems most of the times I spend more days wheels up than down.

Hydration is the primary issue followed by mobilization. Drink one half liter each hour.

The exercise selection depends greatly on where you carry stress. However, in general the most effective general exercises for abating extending airline trips include - neck, thoracic and pelvic/lumbar (circles, infinities, hourglasses, and cloverleaves).

If you feel comfortable do them in your seat, which may be mandatory if your locked in the middle or window seats. Also, trips to the bathroom are an excellent opportunity.

Due to the air pressure, lack of adequate oxygen in the air, and the confined space / forced position, I have found it necessary to do one 5 minute session per hour. Also, I have found that even the most sensitive passenger can handle one disturbance per hour for you to walk to the bulkhead for room and ROM exercise.

This is as a side note, the same program that I teach to my commercial pilot clients.

Finally, without being a shill for the airlines, whenever possible... upgrade. First class is not about luxuries, but space. The additional space will afford you great relief.

[jphaas]

Coach,

Great stuff - as usual! I had thought about the hydration factor and plan to keep a bottle of water with me to supplement the usual drink cart runs.

One 5 minute session per hour sounds just about right. I will make it a point to get up and move around to the bathroom or bulkhead to do my ROM exercises. Unfortunately, I can't upgrade to 1st class for this trip (not enough airline miles!), but I did get the first row in the "peasant class" in order to have that extra leg room. Essential on a long flight!

Thanks for your input. I will put it into practice! :D

Jon

[Connie Brown]

I had an interesting conversation with a pilot once about the hydration.

It is expensive to pressurize the cabin so most airlines only pressurize to the equivalent of 8,000 feet (I also heard 10,000, could that be right?). And with the constant air recirculation it is like hiking to the mountaintop where it is blowing and standing there for 14 hours.

So anything you can do to prevent moisture loss is good too. bag balm or fisherman's hand cream on exposed areas of skin.

[rbibbs]

Pressurization is indeed expensive. The outside air has to be compressed, which heats it. That heat has to be removed by air-conditioning, which does the same thing to airplanes it does to cars, cuts fuel mileage. In fact, the whole "no smoking" thing on airplanes was driven by fuel economy, not health. Health actually suffers when the cabin air is not replaced as often. 5000-8000 feet is a typical cabin pressure-altitude. 12,500 is the legal limit for operating without supplemental oxygen, and 10,000 is a little close to that.

I haven't flown since the heightened-security thing happened, so my old habit of walking back to the galley for refills might be frowned upon by flight crews now. I'd say, to the devil with the reverie of adjacent passengers in aisle seats, you'd be doing them a favor making them get up to let you out. Prolonged sitting is the prime (non-trauma) cause of deep-vein thrombosis, which can cause a fatal occlusive stroke. On DC-10s, there's a big open space by the rear cabin door, where you can move your legs. That shouldn't cause too much consternation among the crew. If you're not too sensitive about what 200 strangers will think about you, you could do the whole WW routine there. Lavatories are so cramped, it's a wonder anyone can manage to lower their trousers without a video instructional tape to show them how. Anyhow, get some circulation back in your legs, motion in your neck and pelvis, and differential motion in your shoulders (connected to neck, eh?).

See why I don't fly much?

[James Boelter]

And here I thought I was simply a wuss because I always got off airplanes feeling like seven miles of bad road. Great stuff, guys...I learn something new every day here.

[JasonE]

Airline water can taste pretty nasty, so you may want to leave some rooms for a few liters of decent water in your carry-on. Otherwise, you can probably get a few bottles of decent water from the crew if the airline provides for that sort of thing.

Other than that, you might also want to bring some mental exercise in the form of a book or magazine.