Jet Lag, etc.?

[AboutWeston]

RE: FINAL FOUR IN DENVER: The altitude is one thing, the long cross country air trip another...should I worry?

 

[Phil]

No, they are leaving Thursday, so will be adjusted to jet lag easily.

 

[vtcwbuff]

It's only a couple of time zones and it's much easier to adjust for East to West travel. No big deal.

As for the altitude - everyone is playing at the same 5K. The only concern for UConn might be Dolson but despite "Coach" Peck's concerns I think Dolson is in better condition than her running form indicates. Every game I watch her lumbering up and down the court and conclude that she's tired - yet she keeps on lumbering at the same pace for the entire game.

 

[Adesmar123]

RE: FINAL FOUR IN DENVER: The altitude is one thing, the long cross country air trip another...should I worry?

What time does your flight get in?

 

[AboutWeston]

Thanks everybody! I'll be back here in CT with my fingers crossed!!!

 

[Samanthabrown3]

Jet lag, no problem. Altitude? Don't know. I have a colleague who went to a conference in Denver last year and had a headache the whole five days she was away. I looked up on the Internet "how to treat altitude sickness" and guess what they recommended? "Go to a lower altitude."

Hope the team's excellent conditioning helps them avoid headaches and upsets.

 

[MilfordHusky]

The standard recommendation is to drink 8 ounces of water for every hour in the air. Unless you are flying in the new Dreamliner, the cabin humidity is very, very low. This helps with dehydration, headaches, and jet lag.

 

[Kait14]

The standard recommendation is to drink 8 ounces of water for every hour in the air. Unless you are flying in the new Dreamliner, the cabin humidity is very, very low. This helps with dehydration, headaches, and jet lag.

I've made the cross country trip 8 times in the past 2 years and I have yet to get jet lag.. I think it's different for everyone though.. Some are effected, some not.. Altitude is a-whole-nother monster though

 

[Bestiarius]

Lots of experienced travellers keep their home sleeping hours when travelling regardless of the time zone.

Regarding altitude, Stanford is at sea level. They will experience the biggest change. The other three schools are within a couple hundred feet up or down of 600. Everyone reacts differently to altitude, but it could be an issue. The best thing to do would be to play immediately upon arrival. Waiting a couple of days is worse for some reason.

Being in good physical condition doesn't help, nor does being young. Keeping hydrated does. Sleeping at a lower altitude helps.

Basically, some people are succeptable to it and some are not. No way to tell in advance unless you've been there before. 5,000 feet doesn't usually cause a problem for most people, but it can. Do the Husky's have hyperbaric chambers in their arsenal?

They will be able to jump higher though. So anyone who wants to try for a highlight reel dunk, that's the time.

 

[Icebear]

I looked up on the Internet "how to treat altitude sickness" and guess what they recommended? "Go to a lower altitude."

No, no, we want to set our goals high.

 

[Samanthabrown3]

Being in good physical condition doesn't help, nor does being young.

Too bad! That helps so many other things.

 

[sarals24]

It's only a couple of time zones and it's much easier to adjust for East to West travel. No big deal.

As for the altitude - everyone is playing at the same 5K. The only concern for UConn might be Dolson but despite "Coach" Peck's concerns I think Dolson is in better condition than her running form indicates. Every game I watch her lumbering up and down the court and conclude that she's tired - yet she keeps on lumbering at the same pace for the entire game.

The coaches are really smart about conserving Dolson's energy also. When UConn is shooting free throws they send her downcourt instead of trying to stick her under the basket for rebounds. She's not a great rebounder anyway, and it limits the amount of times she has to run 90 feet. Smart!

 

[vtcwbuff]

I used to fly to Europe 4-5 times a year for work and jet lag was a concern. I would often leave on Friday evening so that I could acclimate before Monday meetings. I also flew to the West Coast several times a year. Jet lag was never a problem.

I know it goes against conventional wisdom but a couple of extra glasses of wine at dinner and then trying to stay awake as long as possible was my best cure.

 

[Enigma64]

The altitude will affect performance. It takes about 7 to 10 days to get acclimated to the altitude. Their respiratory rate and heart rates speed will go up. Proper Hydration is critical. It will probably affect Stef Dolson the most. Carefully planning their substitution rotation will be very important.

 

[Phil]

The altitude issue is, relatively speaking, the bigger deal. It isn't a big deal, if hydration is followed rigorously, but the time zone issue is a non-issue. I travel regularly to meetings six time zones away. My general rule is day one (going east) is a challenge, day 2 is fine. That said, I'm not expected to put a ball though a hoop many feet away, so I would add a day if I were trying to compete at the highest levels. Coming west is about a half a day easier, meaning day one some effect, but not much and day two is definitely fine. The team has three days and is only changing two time zones, so the time zone effect will be nothing.

5k altitude change is just barely enough to have some impact. For most people, doing ordinary things like walking around, it might be noticed, but probably not. Playing at the limits of your ability, though, is a different story, and there will be a noticeable impact on day one. You will get better each day, and three days should be enough to reach optimal abilities (although there still will be some reduced performance relative to sea level).

The impact should be roughly the same on all teams. In contrast, when Miami played New Mexico in 2003, Miami had a 40-29 lead at halftime (IIRC) but lost. I'm convinced that the Lobos were used to the altitude, but Miami ran out of gas. I think one more day of adjustment would have made the difference.

 

[Phil]

Seven to ten days strikes me as too much for 5,000 feet. The rough rule for climbing is a day per 1,000 feet above 5,000, so seven to ten days is enough to acclimatize to 12 to 15k, or enough for the peaks in the continental US. That said, there is a difference between being able to walk uphill and playing basketball at the highest level, so I'd add a bit, but not that much.

 

[Huskymaniac]

The real question is, will the altitude cause the refs to make a ton of bogus calls in ND's favor or not?

 

[vtcwbuff]

We always played golf whenever we visited Colorado. Courses in the Denver/Colorado Springs area were no problem. I walked and carried my bag.
We played Keystone several times and with holes at 9000'+ it was ride or die.

I've been above 12K quite a few times in Colorado and I always ended up feeling like crap but Denver never bothered me a bit.

 

[McHuskyFan]

A similar question was asked during a chat with Mechelle Voepel today on ESPN ....

source: http://espn.go.com/sportsnation/chat/_/id/43160

Scamp (Seattle): Denver calls itself the Mile High City. Did the NCAA consider the possible negative impact of altitude on players in this tournament? (I've seen teams struggle a bit in Albuquerque's mile-high Pit.)​

Mechelle Voepel: I don't know that the NCAA thought a whole lot about that. Considering all four teams are coming in from elsewhere and it will affect all of them the same way, I don't know that it will have much impact. If Colorado were competing in the Final Four, though, maybe it would. None of the coaches on yesterday's teleconferences seemed very concerned about it.​

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[Huskymaniac]

It will affect Greiner the most.

 

[JimGunther]

Serious question:

Are players allowed to use bottled oxygen on the sidelines?

 

[jsloanjr]

Keeping hydrated is critical day 1......You need to drink twice as much as you normally drink. Getting 8 hours sleep min.
eating light foods and add more fruit and veggies......IMO, ND will have the toughest job adjusting.....

 

[McHuskyFan]

Keeping hydrated is critical day 1......You need to drink twice as much as you normally drink. Getting 8 hours sleep min.
eating light foods and add more fruit and veggies......IMO, ND will have the toughest job adjusting.....

why do you think ND will have the toughest time?

 

[UConner]

Five thousand isn't that bad, 9,ooo really makes a difference. Flying west 2 times zones means staying up late getting up late. Saturday! I don't think this will be any issue.

 

[Yukon]

Apparently, altitude can have some serious side affects for certain individuals:

http://denver.cbslocal.com/2012/01/05/pittsburgh-steeler-star-benched-by-mile-high-altitude/