I've Taken 7 Flights in 30 Days, and This Unexpected Trick Helped Me Avoid Jet Lag Every Time

Travel + Leisure

20 hours ago

Over the past month, I've taken seven flights across three time zones. From Sydney to Los Angeles, Mexico, Panama, and New York, the travel has been fast-paced and packed with movement, but for the first time in a long time, my body has actually been able to keep up. A schedule like this used to throw me off completely. I'd usually make it to the end of the trip, but more often than not, I'd come home sick.
This made it even harder to settle back into everyday life or prepare for the next destination. I've always considered myself pretty in tune with my body, yet I would constantly push myself too far. That all changed last December when I started using the Oura Ring, which is on rare sale thanks to Amazon Prime Day (seriously, select colors are at their lowest prices ever). It's now become one of my non-negotiable travel companions. It's the one device I rely on to actually understand how my body is coping, and more importantly, how it's recovering while still on the move.
Unlike many other health trackers that primarily focus on steps and movement, the Oura Ring is designed for recovery. It tracks over 30 biometrics including sleep, heart rate variability (HRV), resting heart rate, and body temperature—all of which are calculated into a daily Readiness Score to provide digestible and actionable insight into how your body has recovered and whether or not it's a good day to push yourself or slow down. The app also breaks down your sleep stages, trends in your heart rate, temperature shifts, and even how long it takes you to fall asleep, giving you a better picture of your health that's surprisingly easy to interpret.
The ring itself is sleek, lightweight, and powered by internal sensors that seamlessly gather data from your finger throughout the day and night. Like any other ring, you eventually forget it's even there until you have to take it off to charge it. The latest model, the Oura Ring 4, comes in one standard round ring design, available in six colorways and sizes ranging from 4 to 15. Both the exterior and interior are made from titanium, with recessed sensors that make it lighter and sleeker than previous models.
For comparison, the Oura Ring 3 (which I currently use) features the same updated technology but has raised sensors, a mix of titanium and epoxy construction, shorter battery life, fewer size options, and two different band styles to choose from.
With my ring fully charged and ready to go, I touched down in Panama just after sunrise, completely exhausted and barely able to keep my eyes open. A recent study by NUS Medicine and Oura found that eastward travel leads to more intense jet lag. This checked out, as even though I was traveling from Los Angeles to Panama, which is only two or three hours ahead (depending on the season), my body was struggling.
Looking at my data, the Oura Ring confirmed what I already felt: my readiness score had plummeted to 50/100, my heart rate variability had dropped, and my resting heart rate and temperature were elevated. The app flagged all of this in red with a warning alerting me that my body was stressed and needed some extra care.
I used to think the best thing to do after landing was to hit the ground running to acclimate to the new time zone and avoid 'wasting' a day in a new place. But I've learned the hard way that if you burn out early, you won't enjoy the next few days anyway. What the Oura Ring has really changed for me is how I understand my body's response to travel and jet lag, and prioritizing that over everything else. Now, I take things slower on day one, listen to what my data is telling me, and sometimes even break my own rules and take that midday nap.
After doing exactly that in Panama, my readiness score jumped by 20 points that afternoon. By the next day, I was back to normal. The app also offers a Rest Mode feature, which you can turn on manually. It pauses daily activity foals and shifts the focus entirely to recovery, helping you slow down without guilt.
Since I started wearing my Oura Ring, I haven't just travelled better—I've recovered better, too. It's helped me shift from powering through jet lag to actually understanding how my body responds to it, so I can make smarter choices and avoid the post-trip crash I used to see coming. It's the one thing I never take off except to charge, and it's easily the most useful travel companion I've added to my routine in years.
Looking for more ways to stay rested, balanced, and energized while you travel? Keep scrolling for smart travel essentials that frequent flyers swear by to help manage jet lag; they're all on sale for Amazon Prime Day and are marked down up to 68 percent off until Friday, July 11.
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