Why are long haul trips like airplane rides and bus rides so exhausting, even though all we do is sit?
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I did read somewhere that most commercial planes are only pressurised to mimic a fairly high altitude so if you’re used to living at sea level you might feel more exhausted because you’re not used to the lower-than-usual air pressure. That’s why you can feel particularly zapped after a flight even if you sleep.
A quick Wikipedia search tells me that a 767 is pressurised to 7000 ft which is significantly higher than Denver and SLC and just below Aspen.
Humans are not designed to do any 1 particular thing for extended periods of time, except light running (best cardio creatures on the planet, or one of the best with training)
I don’t really find them exhausting. Maybe because of habit?
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For planes specifically, acceleration, vibration (including turbulence), noise, lowered barometric pressure, variations of temperature and humidity. There are a bunch of different forces acting on your body essentially.
The physical effects that flight has on the body are very well documented due to the practice of in-flight medicine. In general, the results are a person being sleepy and hungry.
Why are buses so exhausting? Buses are uniquely hellish thanks to two things: the constant vibration, and the rage you feel when the bus pulls off the Interstate into Middletown with 25 minutes of waiting at the station for no good reason. Plus you have that ten minute detour through suburban Middletown before you reach the station, and then you double back to re-experience it on your way out. Yay, you’ve just had 45 minutes added to an already too-long journey. Done just a few times, this kind of thing turns a four-hour trip into a seven-hour trip.
micro vibrations that you don’t even realize your body is working to compensate for
added stress you aren’t used to
lower air pressure means less oxygen in your blood (flying)
Airplane cabins are very very dry, with typically 4-7% humidity. Even mild dehydration can cause fatigue and lethargy. New composite material airplanes like the 787 have higher humidity in the cabin, around 15%, and you feel much better afterwards.
Let’s picture yourself watching your favorite show on TV. You’re sitting down on a comfy sofa and you’re free to do whatever you want. You can’t get tired, right?
Now imagine your house is being remodeled. There are people moving around, running in front of the TV, drilling and hammering stuff. Plus, some of them (people you don’t know) decide to take a break and watch TV with you. Suddenly, you feel squeezed on your seat, with unknown people around you, strange smells, noise all around and you’re worried someone could break your TV and you might never see the ending of your show. You can’t move your legs too much, you can’t breath in properly, it’s noisy, you can’t fart and there’s this feeling of danger, which makes you feel uneasy.
Most of the top comments seem to miss the main answer:
Vibration and jostling for busses and cars, air pressure and some vibration for planes.
You’ll notice this on land if you go from an old or poorly designed car to one with a more comfortable ride. In the air, if you ride on Boeings Dreamliner, which uses better understanding of jet lag and fatigue to be less exhausting, you’ll see it there.
There are other factors, mentioned by others, such as noise, changing sights, unchanging positions, and more. But jostling and air pressure are the biggest.
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