Best Way to Workout While on the Road
As a gym owner, I’m often asked about the best way to work out while on the road. There’s no right answer, but there are a lot of great ways to stick to your routines and move your body while traveling. The key is to do something! In this blog post, I'll share my top three tips for staying fit while on the road.
I’m 36 years old and my goal is sustainable health. For me, that means maintaining my weight for the remainder of my life. Currently, I fluctuate between 178-183lbs. My goal is to maintain this even when I’m 75 years old by continuing to exercise, on average, 4x/week. If you haven’t read my blog, “The Long-Term Benefits of Consistent Exercise” you should- it is the single most important message I have ever shared.
(https://www.blendedathletics.com/journal-1/consistent-exercise).
On a recent trip to visit my partner’s family in Saskatoon, we were tasked with working exercise into our day at a nearby Goodlife Fitness. After spending eight hours traveling and sitting on planes, a good warm-up was important. We spent 15 minutes doing some light cardio to get the blood flowing, I prefer some variety so we tackled five minutes on a bike, rower and stair climber. After another 10 minutes of light stretching and some basic accessory work it was time to find a barbell (If you want to learn more about barbells check out this blog post https://www.blendedathletics.com/journal-1/2022/10/5/oh-the-variety-of-all-the-deadlifting-bars). After tackling the functional strength section of our workout, we jumped over to the dumbbells and cable machine to rep out some high volume, light weight bodybuilding and accessory work. It wasn’t our home gym and we didn't have access to Ground Zero or Stamina, but we made it work.
Here are my top 3 tips to maintain your health while traveling or visiting family and friends when you are away from your home gym:
Tip #1:
Whether traveling or at home my #1 tip and personal goal for the day is to be hydrated. I start off with 1L of water before coffee or food and aim to get another 2-3L of water throughout the remainder of the day.
Tip #2:
Currently I’m not following any specific exercise programs, but typically while traveling I like to keep the weights light and volume a little higher. My goal is to move my entire body and feel better overall walking out of my workout then I did walking in. This means not pushing myself so hard that I wake up with sore muscles or a bad case of DOMS (Delayed Onset Muscle Soreness).
Tip #3:
Breakfast, breakfast, breakfast… the easiest meal of the day. If I’m at an AirBnB, I’ll typically buy enough breakfast food to cook for my whole stay, and it's also the best meal to make myself and save some money. If I'm eating out, it’s still the easiest meal to keep me on track and I prioritize making the most of it by choosing good protein sources and eating slowly, which starts the day off right.
Not letting travel or the holidays get in the way of maintaining my routine means I have to think outside the box. For us, we were fortunate to find a gym nearby, but if this isn’t possible, there are lots of short term options that work in a pinch and keep fitness habits firmly in place. If fitness is the priority, then you’ve got to be committed to working it into your day, regardless of other demands you find yourself committed to, whether it be visits with family and friends, a tropical beach, or open bar. You’ve worked hard to achieve your fitness goals and your back-at-home self will thank you if you maintain them while you’re away.