Do you Have Weekend Jet Lag?

Many of us have weekday routines that we set aside on the weekends.

Later nights. Later mornings. Snooze! Yawn. Pancakes.

There's nothing wrong with a little weekend self-care, but there are hidden biological costs. Research Till Roenneberg coined the phrase "Social Jet Lag," or, the difference of sleep timing between work and free days due to social constraints. Significant shifts away from your body's natural circadian rhythms create "Circadian Misalignment" which throws off our suprachiasmatic nucleus, the part of our brain that conducts our circadian rhythms and creates a higher risk of depression and other health issues.

And then we spend the rest of the week catching up. Ironic, because we think about the weekend as the time to catch up on the sleep we missed during the week. In short, it is impossible to “catch up” on sleep and it doesn't reverse metabolic dysregulation.

The best thing we can do for our body and our brains is to keep our schedules as regular as possible. Within an hour or so, keep bed times and wake-up times. This might mean being a little more generous to yourself during the week. Sleep is a crucial (and often overlooked) factor in how we manage our focus and energy every day.

The good news is this is probably easier now with the pandemic than ever. We’ll feel more rested and focused, having a more regulated and steady biological clock.

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Caveday is a company aimed at improving your relationship to work. We write regular posts on Medium and send out monthly newsletters with productivity tips, life hacks, and recommendations. Sign up for the mailing list here.

Jake Kahana is a cofounder of Caveday. Sign up for his personal emails, called “The Email Refrigerator” here.