How to Reduce the Damage From Sitting Through a Long Flight

Long flights do real things to your body: blood pools in your legs, joints stiffen, you dehydrate faster than you think, and cabin pressure messes with digestion. The counter-strategy is simple. Drink water aggressively — aim for a cup every hour. Get up and walk the aisle at least once every two hours. Do ankle circles and calf raises in your seat. Avoid alcohol and heavy meals before boarding. Compression socks genuinely help with leg swelling and reduce DVT risk. You can't avoid the confinement, but you can arrive feeling significantly less wrecked.