When we’re travelling, and no doubt relaxing and imbibing in good food and drink, we tend to forget about our waistlines. With this in mind we’ve asked, Adam Rogers, founder and coach at New Horizon Escapes to share his top tips on how to stay in shape whilst travelling.
Plan ahead
Chances are you know where you’re going to be staying and how long you’re going to be staying there. Try spending a few extra minutes of your travel planning to search the local area for nearby gyms, parks or local running routes. You should then be able to work out a realistic training regime for the week.When I travel, I know the chances of being able to maintain my exact routine are very slim. For that reason I plan a slightly more manageable, whole body workouts that requires less equipment and also burns a few extra Calories at the same time.
Don’t eat pastries everyday
Now don’t get me wrong, we’re all partial to a good hotel breakfast buffet, but just keep in mind your usual breakfast is probably a far cry from the 3 Danish pastries, 2 croissants, 1 bowl of granola and pancakes that you’re about to stuff down your throat. As a one off it won’t really make too much of a difference, but consume that every day for a week or two and your asking for trouble. Try to maintain as close to normal eating habits as possible, or if you really can’t resist, at least make sure you balance out the Calories later in the day.
Sharing is caring
You’re on holiday right? So when the waiter asks if you’d like to see the dessert menu, the default answer is almost always a big fat YES. Desserts are absolutely jam packed with Sugar, and therefore are a very easy way to add the Caloric equivalent of another full meal to your day. Go ahead, order that gooey chocolate lava cake, but get it with two spoons.
Pack some snacks
You know you’ve got a long journey ahead of you, and you know the snack options a long the way are going to be very limited, but time and time again we pray for a miracle that all of a sudden McDonalds, KFC and 7Eleven have changed their business models toward healthy food. Do your body a favour and pack a few snacks to take with you on the road. A couple of pieces of fruit and a bag of Almonds will at least tie you over for part of the journey, and save you from the nasty processed options.
Results you will lose, if you don’t moderate booze
There’s nothing wrong with having a few drinks on holiday, but spread over an entire day it’s easy to unknowingly consume thousands of extra Calories every single day of your holiday. If you’re going to drink, try to pick a window of time that you’re going to do it (perhaps from dinner time). That way you’re much less likely to consume as many drinks, and therefore as many Calories. In an ideal world you wouldn’t drink anymore than you would back at home, but let’s be realistic about it hey?
The best way to guarantee that you stay in shape while travelling is to keep as close to your normal regime as possible. That’s easier said than done though, and that holiday urge to over indulge can often overwhelm us, so my advice is to just try and be mindful of your food and activity levels. Laying on a sunbed for an entire day and eating twice as much food than you would usually, is a guaranteed way to have you feeling wobbly by the time you go home, but it’s also important to understand that one week of over-eating and under training is not a life sentence. You WILL get yourself back on track, so if you do let yourself go a bit, don’t beat yourself up about
