Flight Attendant Shares The 1 Ritual She Always Does Before Takeoff—It Could Be The Difference Between Life And Death: ‘I Don’t Care How Long The Flight Is’

For most people, a pre-flight ritual might involve buying copious goodies at duty-free or turning your phone on airplane mode. But as one popular flight attendant points out, this particular ritual might end up preventing a tragedy.

On TikTok, countless flight attendants have gone viral after sharing aspects of their (literally) high-flying life, whether that be surprising insights into the ways they train for the job or the kind of code words they use on flights. But TikTok user and flight attendant Cici’s (@ciciinthesky) advice might be the most important of all.

The video, which has garnered 764,800 views, consists of Cici repeatedly stretching out her calves on a plane. On-screen text reads, “I’m a flight attendant and I do this before every flight.”

She explains the reason in the video description. “I don’t care how long the flight is..I do this because sitting still for 4+ hours slows blood flow in your legs, which can lead to Deep Vein Thrombosis (DVT) a blood clot that can break loose and travel to your lungs. It’s rare, but it’s real, and it’s preventable,” she writes.

“One of the simplest things you can do: calf raises before you take off. Your calf muscles act as a pump that pushes blood back up toward your heart. When you sit for hours, that pump basically shuts off. Do 20–30 before your flight. Then repeat every 30 minutes in your seat. That’s it.”

She continued: “The National Blood Clot Alliance also recommends staying hydrated, avoiding alcohol, and keeping your carry-on in the overhead bin so your legs actually have room to move. Small habit. Big protection.”

BroBible reached out to Cici via website contact form.

What Did Commenters Say About This Pre-Flight Ritual?

Many commenters shared their own anxieties related to DVT. “Welp… New fear unlocked… Guess I’ll be doing this on every flight now…” one wrote.

“I’m cooked at my 10 hour/day desk job,” a second added.

“I’m that person doing this and walking the aisles every hour,” a third admitted. “I don’t play!”

“I do this every flight,” a fourth chimed in. “My husband once asked if I was nervous. Nope, just trying to prevent blood clots.”

How Else Do You Prevent Deep Vein Thrombosis?

As Cici points out, deep vein thrombosis (DVT), as defined by the Cleveland Clinic, occurs when a blood clot forms in a vein that is deep in your body. The calf is a very common place to get DVT, and one of the main reasons it happens is due to slow-flowing blood. This means that staying stationary for a long time can arguably increase the risk of it forming. If the clot breaks off and flows to your heart, this could put you at risk of something known as a pulmonary embolism.

According to a study by ScienceDirect, symptomless DVT can occur in up to 10% of long-haul flight passengers. Along with movement, as Cici suggests, countless TikTok commenters also pointed out that one of the best ways to prevent DVT is through wearing compression stockings. Most commonly, compression stockings are tightest in the ankle area, with the pressure easing as the socks go up the leg. As WebMD writes, research suggests that this increases how much and how fast the blood flows through your legs and to your heart.

The website notes that this means that the arteries taking blood to your muscles can relax more. In turn, blood can flow more freely. As well as this, the veins that push the blood back to your heart get effectively “boosted.” This prevents blood from pooling and a clot forming.