Don’t Let Travel Plans Derail Your Fitness Goals!
It can BE hard to stick to your workout routine when you’re traveling…
…so whether you’re on the road for business or pleasure, here are a few tips to help you stay active while you’re away!
It can be hard to stick to a fitness routine when traveling. So today, I wanted to share the advice I give to my clients who are preparing for travel with all of you!
For my clients, I prioritize focusing on the simple things that they know make them feel good - staying hydrated, getting quality sleep, and moving their bodies.
The routine for my clients starts on with the travel itself, before they even arrive at their destination - I encourage people to get up at least once during their flight, even if it is just to stretch a bit and take a bathroom break. If you’re driving, getting a little activity in at a rest stop can make a huge difference. Compression socks are another favorite, especially if your feet tend to feel a bit sore or swollen after long flights or drives.
Once you arrive at your destination, you’ll most likely have a lot of plans that have nothing to do with fitness - and that’s okay! It’s important to be realistic when planning your exercise routine for travel - setting unrealistic goals can lead to guilt and shame when you don’t achieve them. When traveling for work, there’s a good chance that you may not have much control over your schedule, and when on vacation, it can feel really limiting to try to stick to the normal routines you would have at home.
Instead, I set my clients up for success with appropriate goals for the type of trip they have planned.
If you’re visiting NYC and have a lot of tourist activities planned, maybe that means simply getting in a daily step count that’s much higher than what you normally have at home (all the steps in the subways are a workout in and of themselves!). If you’re traveling with others, maybe it’s including some group fitness in your downtime (my girlfriends and I have done yoga, spin, and dance classes while away). If you’re on a work trip where they days tend to run long or you’ll get stuck going to late business dinners, perhaps a simple and quick morning workout is the best way to stay on track and start your day on a positive note.
You’re much less likely to stick to your fitness goals if you don’t plan ahead, so avoid waiting until you get to your destination to figure your your exercise plan.
Instead, think about what your goals are and map out how your can achieve them - you may want to enlist someone else to help with this, whether it’s an accountability partner that you’re traveling with, the fitness pro that you work with at home, or even the hotel concierge. I like to set some “daily minimum” goals for my clients that I know they can achieve, and consider any activity above those to be a bonus, rather than overcommitting them to an exercise plan that will likely get derailed and cause them to feel frustrated or disappointed. Whether they are traveling for fun or for work, that feeling is definitely one I want them to avoid associating with fitness!
No hotel gym? No problem!
Because it is common for people to want to continue their fitness routine while traveling, I’ve seen several hotels without gyms offer alternatives to guests. These have included on-property activities such as rooftop yoga, or off-property options such as day passes to a nearby gym. Many gyms and studios offer free or discounted trials, from single classes to weekly passes, so it is worth taking some time ahead of your trip to see what fitness centers and studios are located near your hotel and what offers they have available. If the weather is nice, many public parks and beaches also have outdoor gym equipment you can utilize.
Another option is to have small workouts planned that you can do in your hotel room. Many on-demand fitness brands, as well as fitness pros on YouTube, have bodyweight workout content that can be done in a small space. You may also want to pack equipment that doesn’t take up much room, like a pack of resistance bands, or this foldable travel yoga mat. On girls trips, my friends and I often cue up dance cardio workouts which are a lot of fun to do together and require no equipment at all! If you work with a fitness professional and are working towards some specific goals, you can ask them if they will do remote sessions with you, or if they can give you an independent workout routine specifically for when you travel. I often do this for my clients so that they feel confident about staying on track to meet their goals while they are away.
Variety is the spice of life - so why not try something new?
A lot of people like to explore when traveling - from landscapes, to restaurants, to languages, novelty is a big part of the pleasure of travel. If this is part of what you enjoy about travel, why not add a new fitness activity to the list? A scenic run in a new city, an activity-based excursion, or a class you’ve always wanted to try, but doesn’t fit your routine at home, are all fun ways to incorporate exercise into your travel schedule.
I hope these travel tips help you stay on track with your fitness goals on your next trip!
