Travelling

Travelling on a polyphasic schedule is tricky, though it's generally achievable with sufficient preparation. However, the level of difficulty is largely dependent on the specific schedule being followed and, crucially, how much the timezone changes.

Dealing with time zones

The main challenge of travelling is adjusting to a new time zone. The bigger the change, the tougher it can be to handle. Here are the main ways to deal with a time zone switch:

Stick to the home schedule

This is often the best way to go. When you arrive, you'll sleep earlier or later according to the local clock, but the goal is to keep your body's actual sleep times the same. The main benefit is that you won't have to physically shift your sleep pattern, so your adaptation shouldn't be too affected. This is a good choice if the time zone change is minor, like 2-3 hours.

However, if it's a massive shift (like 12 hours), this route gets much harder because you'd be trying to sleep when it's daytime locally and stay awake through the night. In that situation, you'll need to create an artificial dark period (making your environment dark to simulate nighttime).

Shifting the schedule to match the new timezone

Another option is to shift your sleep times to match the new local time. So, if your nap was at 11 am back home, it's still at 11 am in the new place. The main issue here is that the circadian rhythm has to adjust, and the more it adjusts, the more the adaptation might take a hit.

If you're still adapting, it is important to stick to the schedule, which is why many people wait until after they travel to start adapting. If you decide to shift your schedule during your trip, you might find it hard to fall asleep quickly in the new time zone, and your schedule could become unstable. It's usually best to avoid this unless you don't have other choices.

Return to monophasic sleep for the duration of the trip

If the time zone is rotated too far, this might be the best option. This would cause the adaptation to be set back in most cases, and it would be necessary to start over when you get back.

Which schedules work best for travel

How difficult it is to handle switching time zones depends largely on which schedule you follow.

Toughest schedules to travel

The schedules that are least suitable for travelling are mainly the schedules with long core sleeps at night, and asymmetric schedules in general. Examples include regular Everyman schedules, Dual core schedules, TC1, TC2. The more sleep reduction, the more difficult it would be to handle travelling, especially if one isn't stably adapted yet.

Somewhat suitable for travel

These are a bit more manageable. These are schedules that don't reduce sleep significantly. Examples include Siesta, Segmented, E1, and also the extended versions of the regular schedules, typically around 6 hours of total sleep. When shifting the time zones, these schedules tend to be more forgiving comparing to the regular versions with less sleep.

Generally suitable for travel

• Non-reducing schedules (like BiphasicX or others where you get the same amount of sleep as on mono) are good choices here. They are usually easier to adjust if you're careful. Adjusting them brings on jet lag, similar to regular sleep, so it will be necessary to stick to your new sleep times and manage your light/dark exposure.
• Flexible schedules like Sevamayl and Ducamayl are also worth considering. However, both of them have night cores and they aren't equiphasic, so big time zone jumps can still be a challenge.

Most suitable

The best schedules for travel are often the equiphasic ones, meaning the blocks of sleep are spread out evenly. The more evenly the sleep is spread out, the easier it usually is to handle time zone changes.

• Triphasic and QC0 are equiphasic schedules, so they are suitable for someone who travels a lot (as long as you can actually sleep during the day without missing the cores).
• Camayl can be even easier to maintain since its core sleeps are more flexible.
• And then there are the Nap only schedules such as Uberman, Dymaxion, Spamayl. Even though it is close to impossible to adapt to these schedules for an average person, they work well when switching the time zones due to being equiphasic and due to not having long cores at night. However, it's necessary to stick to the original schedule strictly while travelling, without rotating the physical timings of the naps to match the local clock.

Tips for travelling

• Plan the trip so that your cores or naps align with the flight.
• If you have plans to travel, make sure you fully adapt to your schedule in advance, and gradually introduce flexibility if possible.
• If you haven't started your schedule, it's best to wait until after you come back from your trip.