Effects of simulated domestic and international air travel on sleep, performance, and recovery for team sports

Abstract

The present study examined effects of simulated air travel on physical performance. In a randomized crossover design, 10 physically active males completed a simulated 5-h domestic flight (DOM), 24-h simulated international travel (INT), and a control trial (CON). The mild hypoxia, seating arrangements, and activity levels typically encountered during air travel were simulated in a normobaric, hypoxic altitude room. Physical performance was assessed in the afternoon of the day before (D - 1 PM) and in the morning (D + 1 AM) and afternoon (D + 1 PM) of the day following each trial. Mood states and physiological and perceptual responses to exercise were also examined at these time points, while sleep quantity and quality were monitored throughout each condition. Sleep quantity and quality were significantly reduced during INT compared with CON and DOM (P < 0.01). Yo-Yo Intermittent Recovery level 1 test performance was significantly reduced at D + 1 PM following INT compared with CON and DOM (P < 0.01), where performance remained unchanged (P > 0.05). Compared with baseline, physiological and perceptual responses to exercise, and mood states were exacerbated following the INT trial (P < 0.05). Attenuated intermittent-sprint performance following simulated international air travel may be due to sleep disruption during travel and the subsequent exacerbated physiological and perceptual markers of fatigue.

Heart Rate and Cardiovascular Responses to Commercial Flights: Relationships with Physical Fitness

“…Importantly, short–term, 1-h measures were able to clearly identify the acute stress prior to, during and post-flight with significant changes and moderate to large effects (ES). Taken together, our results demonstrated that a commercial flight of only 1 h exposed travelers to a high allostatic load (McEwen and Seeman, 1999; Tonello et al, 2014), which exerted considerable neural and cardiovascular stress (Brundrett, 2001; Fowler et al, 2015). Furthermore, these stress-induced responses were capable of inducing alterations in the circadian rhythms such as blood pressure (Hansen et al, 2010), that can be maintained up to 2 h after the flight.…”

Stress, Sleep and Recovery in Elite Soccer: A Critical Review of the Literature

“…The negative effects of long international travel on sleep (i.e. reduced sleep duration and efficiency and greater awakenings duration) have been documented [110]. Players who join their national team for international competition or travelling to pre-season training camps may be exposed to the negative effects of travel across multiple time zones on sleep [9].…”

“…Travel fatigue is a complex summation of physiologic, psychologic, and environmental factors that accrue during an individual trip, such as prolonged exposure to mild hypoxia and cramped conditions with restricted activity [110,111]. Several studies have assessed the acute effects of short-haul air travel without crossing time zones (total travel time between 3-5 h) on performance and perceptual measures among team sport players [101,110,112]. Globally, results showed that travel has no effect on indicators of performance (i.e.…”

Sleep Quality and Chronotype Differences between Elite Athletes and Non-Athlete Controls

“…Such misalignment is often present in athletes who travel rapidly across time zones [26,27], but may also occur systemically in morning-type or evening-type athletes who are forced to train or compete outside their biological, endogenous sleep window. There are both biological and behavioral aspects to circadian phase preference or "chronotype" [28,29].…”