Health

 

Lori Cooper

 

As a personal fitness trainer I’ve found one of the biggest challenges, for myself and my clients, is what to do while on vacation.  While some people take this time to just relax and forget their fitness routine altogether, they run the risk of lost conditioning, gained weight, and even, perhaps, a complete abandonment of fitness due to the increased effort it takes to jump back in after being lazy for two or more weeks.

 
A better choice is to work in your daily training and nutrition while out of town.   But, how do you this when your gym, your fitness class, your kitchen, and your training partner are all miles away?   Here are a few tips to stay on track while on vacation or out of town.

 

Plan to work out at least as many days as you do on your current program, NO EXCEPTIONS.  Plan to include exercise as part of the fun of your trip, finding ways to incorporate training while seeing the sights in a particular town or region.  Plan your hotel choice on its proximity to fitness training opportunities (hotel gym, nearby local gym, park, YMCA, etc.) For instance, Hyatt Regency Monterey is a great example for destination fitness.

 

Plan your luggage to accommodate fitness tools and workout wear. 

 

Plan your food choices around healthy restaurants and local markets.  And, plan to return home without the extra ‘baggage’ of weight gained through over-eating and under-exercising. 

  
Tip 2: Keep Your Current Workout Schedule 

Whether you workout first thing in the morning before showering or at the end of the day before settling down, do the same while on vacation.  This will allow your body to stay on the same internal clock and make your vacation workouts more do-able. 

 

Fitting exercise into your busy schedule is one of the hardest obstacles to overcome when starting a fitness routine.  If you allow yourself to get off-track while on vacation, you will find it infinitely more difficult to jump back in when you get home. 

 

Don’t allow your vacation to uproot your fitness program, consider your workouts something as mandatory as eating, sleeping, and bathing. 

 
Tip 3: Choose Your Hotel Wisely

 

We have so many choices when choosing our vacation accommodations, but for fitness-minded individuals, one of the top priorities should be a hotel’s proximity to physical training opportunities.  Does the hotel have its own gym or offer daily access to a locally-owned or nearby chain gym?  Even a small hotel gym can keep you on your fitness track; as having a gym in your hotel leaves no excuse for missing your daily workout. 

 

If you workout at a large chain gym check to see if they have a gym in your destination location.  Many big gym memberships allow you to use other branches as part of your contract. Consider gym-hunting part of your day-one itinerary as you’ll likely find these gyms in central locations giving you the opportunity to see the sights while traveling to and from your daily exercise. 

 

Also, most cities have community-based gyms like the YMCA which not only offer fitness programs but rooms for travelers as well.  However, gym workouts are not the only way to get your daily fitness training. 

 

Is your hotel by a park, the beach or another location where you can get in a run?  Whether you’re at the beach, in the woods or in a big city, runners will find endless opportunities for getting exercise AND enjoying the destination.  Throw down some push-ups, sit-ups, planks, and crunches, and you have a full workout anywhere in the world. 

 

Just be sure to run with a partner and stay in well-populated areas for safety reasons. 

 
Tip 4: Pack Your Fitness Tools Last and Unpack Them First  

 
Whether you take running shoes, workout wear, resistance bands, nutritional supplements or all of the above, unpacking them first and leaving them in plain sight throughout your vacation will serve as a daily reminder to get your daily dose of fitness.  Don’t bother packing weights or other heavy, bulky equipment.  Most resistance training can be substituted through the use of bands or body-weight exercises. 

 

Remember to bring your fuel supplements!  If your body is used to certain vitamins, recovery drinks, etc., take them with you.  You’ll be more likely to work out if you have these to serve as a reminder.

 

Tip 5: Stock Up on Healthy Snacks 

Vacation is a prime time for putting on the pounds.  This can be due to poor restaurant and menu choices, as well as being away from your home kitchen and the tools necessary for designing your daily nutrition.  One way to avoid coming home heavier is to stock your hotel with healthy snacks from the local farmer’s market or grocery store.  Not only will this help keep your metabolism even by allowing you to snack regularly, but it will get you out into town to see the locals.  Choose fresh fruits and snackable veggies like grape tomatoes and sugar snap peas, nuts and seeds, and whole grain crackers.  Don’t forget water!  

 

Dining out can also be tricky, especially at exotic locations where eating certain foods can feel like a once in a lifetime opportunity.  If you can, select options from the healthier side of the menu.  But, many specialty restaurants prepare foods in such a way that it is

difficult to calculate calories and fats. 

 

Don’t deprive yourself the pleasure of trying new and exotic foods, simply split the meal in half, sharing with a companion or taking the other half for tomorrow’s lunch.  Not only will this help you maintain your daily calorie allowance, but it will help your pocket book as well, since most vacation dining tends to be higher in calories AND costs. 

 

Remember, being on vacation is not a free pass to abuse your body.  You’ve worked hard to get rid of that spare tire or those saddle bags.  Is a double serving of fettuccini Alfredo with extra cheese and sausage really worth going home with extra baggage?

 

 

Taking a vacation from work does not mean taking a vacation from a healthy, fit lifestyle.  Anyone who has beaten the battle of the bulge or crossed the finish line of competition knows how important maintenance is to an effective exercise and nutrition program.  In as little as two weeks, failure to exercise and eat right can result in weight gain, lost muscle, decreased endurance, and worst of all the impact of starting your program from scratch again. 

 

Maintenance while on vacation can be as simple as a run on the beach or as complex as competing in a destination event; but working in your workout is necessary to avoid the setbacks of a lull in training.  Make it fun and plan exercise as part of your vacation and you’ll be right on track to continue your fitness lifestyle when you get back home. 

 

Super Simple Vacation Training Program
 
Run.  On the beach, through the woods or in the city.  Put on your running shoes and just GO for at least 30 minutes EVERY day.  Run with a partner (for safety) and run at a pace which allows you to talk to each other without having to catch your breath between words.

 

Resistance.  Every other day, do at least 100 push-ups, 100 sit-ups and 100 seconds each of Plank Pose and Bridge Pose.  If necessary divide the above exercises into manageable chunks.  For example, do three sets of 11 push-ups and sit-ups or three sets of 11 seconds of Plank/Bridge poses, three times throughout the day to total 99 each.   (If you’re unfamiliar on how to do these exercises, please refer to a personal fitness trainer or yoga coach for instruction.)

 

 

 

Lori Cooper is a retired police officer with 26 years experience in public service.  She is a Certified Personal Fitness Trainer and holds a Bachelor’s Degree in Organizational Training.  Lori is the president and owner of LDC Training which provides advanced training for law enforcement and fitness training for veteran officers, recruits, and civilians.  To contact Lori email info@LDCTraining.org. 

 

 

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