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Ahhh Vacation Calories! Travel Fit & Healthy this Summer!
Don’t let all of your hard work go to waste. As someone who has struggled with my weight my whole life, I have always found the most difficult times to be when traveling or on vacation. Seeing as I spent the majority of my first 10 years out of high school travelling and living abroad, this became a BIG problem! As an emotional/boredom/comfort eater, up until recently I have always let my health and fitness regress when on the road. I guess it’s just really easy to tell yourself “screw it. I’ve been really good, now it’s time to kill it and let loose!” At least that’s how it’s been for me for the longest time. And I know firsthand as a fitness instructor how many other fitness enthusiasts out there battle the dangers that travel can pose to one’s midsection.
So, today I am going to share my top 10 travel fitness tips to help you maintain your overall health, performance, and body composition when away from the structure of home:
1.)           Commit to Performing Short 10-20 Minute Maintenance Workouts First Thing In The Morning Each Week
 
Time is not an excuse. We all have at least 10-20 minutes to moving before we start our day. Trust me on this- this brief workout first thing in the morning will set the tone for the rest of your day. Besides being an energy boost, this workout can serve as some damage control if you to decide to indulge in some foods that deviate from your nutrition plan. But they key is to do it first thing in the morning because I personally guarantee you that’s the only time you can count on getting it done when enjoying the sights and sounds of vacation.
 
2.)           Use Body Weight and Resistance Band Exercises That You Can Do Anywhere
 
All you’ll need is your body and one resistance band to get the job done. During maintenance weeks for our clients, we highly recommend using mostly body weight based exercises with the exception of some resistance band exercises to get that pulling component in since it is often very difficult to access body weight rows and pull-ups when on the road.
 
Body weight based exercises allow for some much needed rest and de-loading for the muscles and joints, in addition to the fact that they can go through customs when you are vacationing!
 
3.)           Build Your Own Vacation Workouts for Fun
 
Let’s face it- working out with intensity can get old real fast! So, if you are in it to be fit for the long run, you better find a way to mix things up as often as possible with your workouts to keep yourself motivated.
 
Travel allows for all of this and more as you can typically access a host of unique training locations and equipment! Maybe hit the beach and alternate between intervals of sprints and body weight strength exercises so that you can burn fat and get some Vitamin D in at the same time.
 
Or hit up the local park and do a playground style workout using benches, monkey bars, etc. Let your mind wander and most importantly have fun deviating from the typical structure of your at home workouts!
 
4.)           Bring Portable Fat-Burning Snacks
 
This may very well be the most important tip of all. At home, we all choose the foods that are most convenient, affordable, and accessible, which is why meal planning and preparation is so critical to being lean year round. This becomes especially important when traveling because the food choices can often be even worse for your body and being unfamiliar with your surroundings means you can’t always lean on the trusty fallback options that you can at home.
 
This is a list of go-to lean traveler foods that have been absolutely critical to maintaining fitness on the road and here they are:
 
-       Mixed raw nuts (almonds, cashews, pistachios, pecans, walnuts, etc.)
-       String cheese ( better quality when possible)
-       Protein Powder and/or Amino Acids
-       Organic Deli Meat (unsweetened, low in salt)
-       Fruit and Raw Veggies
 
Use these fat-burning, muscle-building foods to stay full and leave less room for all of the other junk food options that surround us all on a daily basis.
 
5.)           Perform 30-60 Minutes of Daily Activity
 
It is very important to avoid letting a vacation become a time of sloth and laziness. Rather, the lean traveler looks to be active whenever possible when on vacation to keep his or her body in check.
 
Look to walk as much as possible get out and swim or sign up for some local excursions or hikes. Almost all of us naturally increase our caloric intake on vacation, so it is critical to intentionally maintain or increase our activity levels to offset the potential weigh gaining hazards that come with travel eating.
 
6.)           Perform Daily Corrective Stretching and Self-Massage
 
We tend to pay less attention to the small details that keep our bodies safe and pain-free year round when on the road. It is critical to still do some daily flexibility work and foam rolling to keep your muscles, and thus your joints, healthy.
 
You can always bring a half foam roller, a tennis ball, and/or a rolling pin in your suitcase for all of your self-massage needs. Try to get in at least 5-10 minutes of some combination of rolling and stretching both first thing in the morning and before bed for best results.
 
7.)           Don’t Worry About Being Perfect All of the Time
 
Our Urban Hiit participants train hard for 6- 8 week phases at a time with short 1-2 week transition periods throughout the year. That means they are in the classes 43 weeks a year.
 
What we try to instill in our participants is perfection during those 43 weeks that we are together to allow for the desired flexibility during the 11 weeks that we are not. In other words, our clients move to maintenance mode during off weeks allotting themselves 1-2 free meals per week, performing a few short maintenance workouts each week, and focusing more on improving flexibility and tissue quality.
 
This works great because typically our scheduled off weeks fall in line with traditional vacation times and/or holidays- times when people want to indulge in life’s guilt pleasures and enjoy some much needed rest and relaxation. Bottom line, perfection most of the year allows for the desired flexibility at the times when you want it the most!
 
8.)           Plan Your Reward Meals in Advance
 
Let’s not forget that you don’t need to be perfect and eat like a saint when on vacation. After all, the occasional indulgences are a part of living the good life- especially those treats that are unique to certain travel hot spots. But, it is key to at least plan and prepare for them. In other words, we have found most people can allot themselves 1-2 free meals per week and still maintain their results.
 
A free meal, or as some call it a reward meal, is basically a meal that deviates from ideal nutritional guidelines, but in moderation. This means that you eat the same healthy foods that you typically eat plus any other foods you may desire until you are satisfied, but not stuffed!
 
By planning out your 1 or 2 free meals in advance and eating well at all other non-free meals you will best put yourself in a position to maintain your weight loss.
 
 
9.)           Limit Alcohol and Empty Liquid Calories
 
This is always the hardest tip to sell because of how indispensable alcohol can be for some people who want to have a good time and wind down while traveling. Watch out for those all inclusive resorts! The reality is alcohol not only stops fat burning in its tracks, but it actually promotes fat storage. Alcohol also lowers inhibitions and opens the door to host of junk food cravings that will further set you back.
 
Plus, many alcoholic drinks contain high calorie sugary mixes that further tip the proverbial scale in the wrong direction so to speak. Consuming 2-3 alcoholic beverages per day could easily result in an extra 500 calories per day that would in theory result in at least one pound of fat gained in a week’s time just from booze alone. A pina colada, not so bad for you, right? WRONG 526 calories, that’s more than a Big Mac!
 
In general, limit, if not eliminate, empty liquid calories since they provide no nutritional value. Rather, enjoy whole foods that actually give your body some nutrients and fill you up. If you must, try to limit alcohol consumption to 1 drink at most per day and at best 1-2 drinks (or ideally less) per week while on the road.
 
10.)         Bring Your Supplements
 
Just because you are on vacation it doesn’t mean you can toss out all of you effort to set healthy habits for yourself, stick with your program even when you are away.
 
I always take my daily multi-vitamin and fish oil supplements with me so that I can keep taking them every morning religiously like I always do. I also bring protein powder and/or amino acid formulas so that I always have access to some high quality protein every 2-4 hours to best keep lean muscle mass, lean. This is especially important when traveling to any locations around the world that do not have as much animal protein (which contains essential amino acids) in their diets.