Stop Powering Through Travel — Use These Protocols High Performers Rely On

I travel enough to know that our health and wellness on trips usually does not suffer because we “lack discipline.” It suffers because travel is engineered to break rhythm.

We rush to make flights, we are overstimulated between presentations and meetings, we get dehydrated and we eat at odd times. I am not someone who loves an 8 p.m. dinner, but I have learned that resilience matters, especially when the timing of meals and sleep is out of my control.

Then you top it off with hotel rooms that sound like they are powered by steam engines (we all know the pipes and HVAC units), and regardless of time zones and packed schedules, we are still expected to be sharp in a board meeting, charismatic at dinner and “on” at a conference before our body clocks have caught up.

For most entrepreneurs, the default response is to power through: more caffeine, a heavier meal because we “barely ate all day,” one drink to take the edge off (or help close that deal) and a promise to get back on track when you are home.

Because I prioritize my health, I have stopped improvising and started relying on specific protocols. I also asked founders, leaders and executives what they do to keep stress low on the road. The answers that resonated were not extreme, just simple, repeatable routines that make the body feel predictable even when the schedule is not.

The goal is not perfection. It is to land calmer, keep stress down and protect the two things that drive performance everywhere else: sleep and steady energy.

Before I share what these founders and executives rely on, below are my personal non-negotiables that keep me grounded when travel gets chaotic:

• No alcohol on planes. Alcohol has never made me feel good on a flight. It’s the fastest way to wreck my hydration, sleep quality, digestion and clarity.
• No heavy meals in the air. Travel is already a load on the body; a big, salty, hard-to-digest meal mid-flight rarely ends well.
• Move like it is part of the itinerary. I love my “airport steps,” meaning that instead of sitting at the gate before boarding, I walk while I take calls or listen to podcasts, take stairs, stretch at the gate and get up regularly during the flight to help my circulation. (Yes, I am that girl stretching in the aisles!)
• Protect sleep fiercely. A sleep mask is non-negotiable. And because hotels are a wildcard with noise, I love a white noise machine (or a white noise app + small speaker).

With airline choice, I prioritize direct flights and choose carriers where I can upgrade or leverage status. I also have recently fallen in love with airlines like JSX, which remove a surprising amount of friction from travel with their short airport lead times, small terminals, great service and takeoff often within minutes of boarding.

For entrepreneurs whose nervous systems are already running hot, reducing the stress of getting there is part of the wellness plan.

Below are additional routines from executives and founders I enjoyed learning from.

1) The two-hour rule: Reset immediately after you land

Laura Lisowski, Director of Corporate Governance at Nasdaq, has a simple belief about business travel: the trip is often won or lost in the first two hours after arrival. She runs a quick reset sequence designed to lower stress, stabilize energy and cue her body clock to the new time zone.

First, she tends to her “light needs and leg needs.” She gets outside for about 20 minutes of daylight and takes a short walk as soon as possible. Next, she eats a straightforward, protein-forward meal, nothing complicated, just something stabilizing.

Finally, she sorts the hotel “microclimate” right away: thermostat down, window open if available, plenty of water in the room, chargers plugged in and a setup that feels predictable and aligned with how she sleeps at home.

It is not glamorous, but it is the difference between landing “on” and landing behind.

2) Make sleep portable, not dependent on hotel luck

Leah Solivan, TaskRabbit founder turned VC, author and podcaster, calls sleep her number one performance lever while traveling. Her approach is simple and serious: she does not outsource recovery to hotel conditions.

Her non-negotiables start with a Lunya sleep mask because “hotel blackout curtains are never enough.” She takes magnesium at night, turns off screens 30 minutes before bed and maintains a consistent wind-down window, even if the day includes a late dinner or a glass of wine.

Leah has learned from experience that “compounded sleep loss is the fastest way to underperform.”

She also uses wearables in a way I respect and relate to. Leah says, “I also wear an Oura Ring. I do not obsess over the score, but I use it to monitor recovery trends across multi-city travel. If my readiness is dropping for several days, I adjust my schedule.”

The goal is not a perfect score. The goal is to notice the trend early enough to change course.

3) Do not get intense on the road. Get consistent.

Ellie Rubenstein, Co-Founder and Managing Partner of Manna Tree, used to be a ski racer and she treats travel with an athlete’s realism. “As a former ski racer, I’ve always treated work travel like a competition, and race day preparation starts two hours before landing, not the day before.”

She does not worship hotel gyms. She relies on a PVOLVE travel band kit, bodyweight and outdoor light exposure. She also has one of the most memorable movement hacks I have heard: she wears a weighted vest through airports, turning long terminals and delays into active recovery.

But Ellie’s strongest principle is the one she learned after getting her pilot’s license: “Do not do anything dumb, dangerous or different. Travel is not the time to test new supplements or chase a PR workout. Consistency is the protocol.”

When your schedule is already a stressor, your body does not need novelty. It needs predictable inputs — hydration, protein, movement and sleep — delivered in the minimum effective dose, repeated. She also wears an Oura Ring like I do, not to chase a perfect score, but to track resilience trends and recovery across back-to-back trips.

4) Use food as a reset, not a reward

One of the hardest parts of travel is that meals quietly swing to two extremes: chaos (airport snacks, late dinners, random room service) or rewards mode (“I earned this after today”). Both usually lead you to feel “off” the next morning.

Lulu Ge, Founder of Elix and a Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM) expert, shared one of the most memorable and doable arrival strategies I’ve heard. She calls it a “spicy-bitter reset meal”: eating a small portion of bitter + pungent foods in your first meals after landing, like arugula, radish, ginger and dandelion greens.

In TCM terms, bitter helps clear stress “heat,” and supports digestion, while pungent foods promote circulation and movement. Together, they can help counter that stuck travel feeling, meaning puffy, sluggish, foggy and inflamed, before it snowballs.

It is also easy to execute. Add bitter greens at breakfast, or put ginger in tea. You are not trying to be restrictive. You are giving your body a steadying signal after a day of friction.

5) Protect your eyes to keep your circadian rhythm on track

We talk about jet lag like it is inevitable, but it is often a circadian mismatch made worse by the environment: overhead lights, glowing screens and bright airports at the wrong times.

Dave Asprey is known for extreme biohacking, but one of his most usable travel tips is simple: blue light glasses. Your internal clock takes its cues from light, and airports and planes deliver plenty of harsh brightness when your body should be winding down. Reducing blue light exposure at night can make it easier to fall asleep at the right time once you land.

Even if you never adopt another “biohack,” this one is low-effort and high return for late flights, red-eyes and hotel nights after a full day under artificial light. I have worn Flykitt’s “Unwind” glasses (alongside using the full kit), and noticed a difference, especially on trips where my schedule forces late screens and early mornings. Pair blue light glasses at night with daylight after landing, and you cover both ends of the circadian equation.

6) Choose one anchor ritual that travels with you

The leaders who stay most consistent do not try to recreate their perfect home routine on the road. They choose one small ritual and do it everywhere. It becomes a signal to the nervous system: we are okay, even here.

Danuta Mieloch, founder of Rescue Spa and Danucera skincare, has a packing philosophy that fits high-performing entrepreneurs perfectly: less, but better. She packs selectively: high-quality clothing, high-performance skincare, nothing unnecessary and says that travel should feel streamlined and intentional.

Her non-negotiable is her skincare routine. She never skips her Danucera “5 steps in 5 minutes,” even in transit. During flights, she avoids makeup completely and focuses on barrier protection and hydration, traveling with Cerabalm, eye patches and a silk eye mask. The discipline keeps her skin calm no matter the environment.

Even if skincare is not your anchor, the concept is universal. A five-minute ritual you will actually do beats a fantasy routine you will never follow. Perhaps yours is stretching. A walk outside. A protein-forward breakfast. Two minutes of breathwork before bed. Pick one, make it portable and repeat it until it becomes automatic.

Gara Post, Co-Founder and Chief Creative Officer of The NOW Massage, echoes this idea. She commits to one grounding practice first thing in the morning, whether that is exercise, meditation or even a short walk, because it helps her stay present and lead the day with intention.

7) The underrated travel skill: An escape plan for nights

Business travel can quietly become a nightly social marathon: dinner, drinks, “one more” conversation, then a late bedtime. Do that a few nights in a row and beyond feeling tired, you lose sharpness and become more reactive. In other words, not your best leadership self.

Jessica Thompson, both CEO of Yogo (the #1 rated yoga travel mat worldwide) and CEO of Rinova International, shared a strategy I have used myself: create a built-in escape plan so you are not expected to go out every night.

Sometimes that means choosing lodging that gives you space, having a morning commitment that creates a hard stop, or simply deciding in advance which nights are “yes” nights and which are “protect sleep” nights.

Travel will always break rhythm and be a little chaotic. The goal is not to “be perfect” on the road, but to stop improvising when everything around you is unpredictable.

Choose a few non-negotiables for your next trip: reset in the first two hours after landing, make sleep portable and anchor your morning with one grounding habit. Do that, and you will land calmer, keep stress down and show up sharper, without needing a full-blown recovery week when you get home.