I’ve just returned from a four-day trip to New Zealand – which involved flying over two nights, touching down at Dubai and Melbourne, and doing the same in return, all within a week. On my journey out I was determined to try and get some rest as I knew I had a busy schedule from touchdown. I drink a lot of water a the best of times, but halfway through the 16 hour stretch from Dubai to Melbourne, I still started feeling the telltale signs of ‘the lag’ – aching legs, nausea and a headache which fermented for the next day.

When we stopped at Melbourne, there was a counter advertising this new Kiwi ‘Aerotonic Flight Beverage’ called 1Above. I was intrigued, and on the way back, stocked up a 600ml bottle and four concentrated recharge bullets. At NZ$33 (£18) for the 3.5l of the stuff that I was recommended for such a long stint, it’s not cheap, and tastes a lot worse than a Bloody Mary (a bit like a cold cup of green tea in fact), but it certainly seemed to work. The idea is to keep sipping away at it, letting it deliver a constant flow of electrolytes, vitamins and something called Pycnogenol, to give balanced hydration. The only problem is you’ll need to sit in an aisle seat as you get to know the heads better than anyone else aboard – plus you’ll tire of the taste after about the first mouthful.

But I got off the plane in both Dubai and Heathrow feeling distinctly normal, relatively chirpy even, rather than a grizzly, tetchy, festering wreck.
Those heading out for the string of Caribbean regattas over the next couple of months might want to check out 1Above