If you travel for vacation once a year, you don’t have to worry that your holiday will ruin your fitness journey. However, people who travel often for work or true adventurers who stay away from home for months might notice the effect of their lifestyle on their fitness. But, it’s always possible to have the best of both worlds if you plan your travels well. Here’s how you can stay in shape during your travel adventures:
Eat well
Just because you’re not home and don’t have access to your regular healthy food, it doesn’t mean you can ditch your diet and rely on just junk food. Every destination has healthy eateries where you can grab meals with lean meat, whole grains and delicious veggies. Also, you can even rely on your own cooking by visiting farmer’s markets. Keep track of what you eat and you’ll surely stay in shape while traveling.
Drink plenty of water
Traveling is thirsty work, so make sure to always have your trusted water bottle with you. When you have water at hand, you’ll most likely skip on buying overpriced soda. If you decide to go out, keep in mind that cocktails (and all alcoholic drinks actually) are loaded with empty calories. If you want to have some fun with drinks, opt for wine, light beer or vodka soda.
Pack a few supplements
Jet lag, new climate, new people and plenty of new activities can really take a toll on the body. For that reason, make sure to pack your supplements that will keep you healthy, strong and focused. Supplements like whole body collagen can provide great support for your bones, joints and skin. With a good whole-body supplement, you’ll be ready to tackle all travel challenges, keep up with your workouts and look fresh and healthy doing it.
Book good accommodation
There are so many ways you can work out while traveling. Firstly, you can book a bigger room that will allow those at-home bodyweight exercises without having to move everything around. Secondly, check the hotel facility offer and ask whether they have a gym you can use. Thirdly, you can study the map of the area and pick a hotel that’s close to a public park, outdoor gym or cheap commercial gyms. This way, you’ll have a variety of ways to perform your daily workouts and stay on track with your fitness schedule while on the go.
Rely on bodyweight exercises
You might be used to that heavy gym equipment or your home dumbbells, but it’s very hard to pack these in your suitcase. Instead, find a workout plan that focuses on bodyweight exercises that can be just as effective. For instance, pushups, squats and crunches can be performed anywhere and anytime and they will hit almost every muscle in your body. HIIT modes are also very effective when you have some time between departures.
Pack some accessories
As stated above, traveling with dumbbells and kettlebells can be nearly impossible, but you can always find space in your suitcase for a few workout accessories. For instance, you can pack a jump rope, resistance bands and a lightweight travel yoga mat—all of these can fit into your suitcase and take up minimal space. And with your accessories, you can enjoy all sorts of cardio sessions as well as resistance exercises.
Do some walking
Most travelers do a lot of walking throughout the day, especially tourists. And even if you travel for work, you can still rely on your legs to get around. After a hard day of meetings, you can take a walk to explore the city and check out all the must-see sights. It’s also possible to squeeze in a few extra hundreds of steps by using stairs instead of elevators or taking a walking lunch on your break. By walking, you’ll get to experience the destination on a much deeper level and discover many hidden gems you might otherwise miss by taking a bus or a cab.
It’s more than possible to stay fit and healthy while traveling. Of course, you don’t have to push yourself with a healthy diet and heavy exercises like you do at home, but any level of sticking to your schedule and menu will bring results.
