Previously, we covered 5 suggestions on the nutrition aspect of fitness while traveling. In this final part of the article, we will go through some ideas for exercising while traveling.
1) Make it a point to workout at least once
Continuing with what you have already been doing prior to traveling will help you stay on track on your fitness goal. However, we know that this is an ideal situation, and when traveling many things can take us off your ideal plan.
Therefore, the idea is to do what is close to what we have been doing. In this case, working out at least once a week will help us continue some key habits we have been doing. When we get home, it makes things easier to get back to our normal habits.
2) Use the hotel gym wisely
Between not working out, and working out with less than optimal equipment, I think it would be wise to pick the latter.
Most hotel gyms do not have power racks, squat racks, barbells and lots of weight plates and dumbbells. Therefore, it is time to make the best out of what is available.
Consider doing circuit-style training. Pick a pushing movement (such as overhead press or dumbell bench press), a pulling movement (lat pulldowns or bodyweight pull ups) and a lower body movement (static lunges for example). Then decide on the sets and reps you would want to do. And start moving.
Who knows that you may love circuit training (which certainly has its own benefits in terms of cardiovascular training), and start incorporating it regularly in your normal routine?
3) Try to stay near a gym
This may sound obvious to some people, but let us ask ourselves honestly if we do plan for this.
Many commercial gyms offer day passes or even weekly passes that allow users to workout for unlimited times during the stipulated period. If you are not sure about this, check out their website or email them in advance.
Furthermore, there are many countries with government-ran sports facilities that often include gyms. Such gyms are typically decently equipped and they charge wallet friendly entry rates.
Ideally, find a gym that has what you need and would help you keep training as if you were at your regular gym. This would help a lot in making consistent progress.
4) Consider bodyweight workouts
I know some hardcore gym rats may shudder at this thought. Bodyweight workouts? Won’t I be losing my gains?
Relax. Consider the fact that you haven’t been successful in finding a gym that is appropriate for you, the next best thing would be doing something rather than nothing. Besides, if you are traveling for less than a week, that is not long enough for you to drastically lose your precious muscle and strength.
Consider doing things like bodyweight push ups, bodyweight pull ups, planks, lunges, dragon flags and burpees. Doing such exercises would help in maintaining strength and muscle.
Furthermore, do consider investing in exercise bands and even TRX. Such tools are very portable and even if you are not traveling, they can assist you in your fitness goals.
5) Consider doing cardio workouts
You might already be doing this in your travel, especially if you do a lot of sightseeing.
Some people prefer jogging. Some people love bouts of sprints. Some people love cycling (especially if their hotel rents out bicycles). Whatever you do, know that you are burning extra calories, and that probably helps in staying in aerobic shape.
I personally prefer long walks while sightseeing. It does not feel like I am putting in a lot of physical efforts but when I look back, I am often surprised to find myself walking over 3 hours a day while traveling.
In summary, it is often not realistic to expect ourselves to continue our fitness regime while traveling. What we can do is to adjust our expectations and make use of what is available in terms of facilities and food options.
At the end of the day, most of us would rather set our mind at ease and enjoy traveling than worry about our fitness progression. If you want to set your mind at ease about your fitness goals while traveling and while not traveling, speak to any of our personal trainers. They will be more than happy to help you set up a personalized fitness routine, and you can focus on the other important things in life.
