The 4 Pillars to a Successful Recovery after a Trade Show
In previous articles, we have stressed how important the first days after a trade show are to chase leads and make sure that you achieve a swell return on investment. You need to work even harder to get in touch with every possible lead and establishing a meaningful conversation. Unfortunately, upon your return this may be the last thing you want to do, because you’re exhausted, underslept and possibly dealing with jet lag.
This brings us to what you should do once you return from a business trip so that you stay healthy after trade shows. It’s not only better for you in the long run, but you also manage to get back into a productive mode. You only stand to win. So, how does one stay healthy after you’ve flown so many kilometres? There are four pillars to our method:
Hydration
Drinking the right amount of water per day should be a skill every adult has mastered on the count of humans can’t survive without water, but dehydration ranks as one of the biggest plights among adults. We’re all a little bit dehydrated and chances are you completely forget to drink water during and after a long trip simply because you’re tired and cranky. But staying dehydrated delays your body’s regenerative abilities and only draws out this condition. Ideally, you should be consuming water at regular intervals during your flight back home.
Once you arrive, drink a little bit more water than what you’re used to. You’ll give your body the necessary fuel to replenish itself after an arduous flight, especially if time zones are involved. One way to do this is to set reminders. Another nifty trick, we’ve discovered is to add the smallest pinch of pink Himalayan salt into your water bottle so that you don’t flush your electrolytes by frequent trips to the bathroom.
Sleep
It’s important that you get back into a consistent sleep regiment as soon as you get back. Do not restrict how much sleep you get, because this will make your days after the business trip harder to get through. Your brain needs some valuable time to unwind and recharge, process all the valuable information you’ve gathered and make sense of all the social interactions you’ve had.
The best way you can get right back on track with your sleep is to put effort to hit consistent times of going to bed and getting up. The predictability of routine aids you in this case. Another way to ensure that you’ll go to sleep when you wish is to kill the lights and get off any devices at least an hour before going to bed. Removing the artificial light source helps your brain slow down activity, thus making it easier to fall asleep.
Diet
This won’t surprise anyone, but consuming heavy foods – highly processed and rich food – is not good for the body in the first days after a long trip. Your body spends energy to digest and if you strain your body by taking in heavy meals you’ll feel the exhaustion to its fullest. Do away with the brain fog and opt for a lighter diet that makes digestion easier. Monitor your portions as well.
This doesn’t apply only to food as well. Coffee might be an office worker’s best friend, but you don’t want to go overboard with the coffee and energy drinks right after a long flight as they may wire you up and keep you from falling asleep. If you want to gain energy throughout the day, the best way to do it is to stay out in the sun and take a brisk walk out to get some fresh air.
Alcohol is also a no-no. The goal is to detox the body!
Exercise
Last but not least (you guessed it!) exercise! Even if you only go out for a long walk for about half an hour to an hour, that’s going to have the best effect on your body to regenerate. Exercise is best used when you’re dealing with jet lag, because it helps you improve the quality of your sleep and faster align your internal clock with the time zone you’re in. You also combat many of the nasty symptoms fatigue, insomnia, daytime sleepiness, headaches, indigestion, irritability, and a lack of concentration. As you can see, it’s all interconnected!
