5 Tips to Crush Your Fitness Goals While Traveling
Let's face it: life can get pretty chaotic at times, especially when you're on the road with minimal downtime. This frequently leads to individuals ignoring their health goals by skipping workouts and falling off track with their diet plan.
After all, it's become quite the arduous task to select nutritious foods when fast food joints and sit-down restaurants are generally more concerned about taste instead of health. Moreover, finding a decent gym when you’re traveling to an unknown location can be tough, and some hotels might only have minimal exercise equipment (or none at all).
Nevertheless, even if you're traveling it doesn't mean you should skip out on your exercise and eat tons of junk food. Many individuals work travel-based jobs while maintaining a healthy lifestyle and reaching their fitness goals.
But what's their secret? How can you manage to eat a healthy diet and follow a proper exercise plan when you’re halfway across the world? Included are some tried-and-true resolutions to your traveling concerns.
Pack Pre-Made Meals
One of the most efficient, if not obvious, remedies to prevent you from falling off track with your diet while away from home is to prep a few days worth of food ahead of time. In the case of living out of a hotel room, Tupperware is your ally, as are foods that keep fresh at room temperature level for several hours.
When you prepare your meals ahead of time, you're basically bypassing the need for dining at fast-food restaurants or buying prepackaged foods. Furthermore, there are quite a few options available for preserving and cooling generous quantities of food while traveling. As long as you can keep perishable food reasonably cold up until you arrive at your hotel (with a fridge) then you should not have any issues. (Plan on bringing your food in your carry-on bag if you’re flying.)
The main point is to keep your food selections basic with choices like oats, rice, fruit, raw vegetables, and so on (all of which keep for quite some time even if not refrigerated). Things like dairy and animal meats need to be refrigerated or at minimum stored in a cooler as long as possible before you get to a hotel/resting area with a fridge. If you don’t have that option, be sure to bring a high-quality protein powder along, like Muscle Delight.
Tips for Eating Healthy at Restaurants
In reality, you’re likely going to have to eat out a few times if you’re on the road for more than a couple days. The good news is that you can still eat plenty healthy while dining out (even if you’re at a fast-food restaurant).
Firstly, look through the menu for options that are denoted "lite" or "healthy" choices, which is becoming more and more popular at many restaurants. Usually, that section will have meal choices that are substantially lower in calories (and higher in protein).
If you see a choice on the menu that looks healthy with a couple of minor exceptions, simply request to have those ingredients omitted/substituted. Per example, McDonald's has a grilled chicken wrap that normally comes with cheese and ranch dressing, both of which you can ask for them to hold. The result is a decent high-protein on-the-go snack.
The key point here is that you shouldn’t hesitate to request modifications to your food order. Even little things like requesting veggies to be steamed as opposed to fried in butter is something most cooks will accommodate.
Be Resourceful to Keep Active
Traveling may limit your access to standard commercial gyms, however being active doesn't always suggest mean you need all the bells and whistles just to get a good workout in. Even something simple like doing a quick HIIT workout outdoors is possible basically no matter where you are (if you're resourceful). For example, find an open field at a park and do some sprints with a mix of some bodyweight exercises like pushups and squats in-between intervals.
Additionally, select hotels will have gyms with a decent amount of equipment for weight training. Even if they don’t have a premium squat rack, you can still get a solid leg workout in with dumbbells and a Bowflex machine. In most cases, you will have to pick a few basic exercises and do more sets/reps per exercise since the variety of equipment at hotels is typically limited.
Take Naps During Commutes (If Possible)
If you're flying or not behind the wheel on a long road trip, be sure to use those times as chances to rest. Even a 15-minute nap can considerably boost your energy levels and help you feel refreshed.
If you’re still dragging by the time you’re scheduled to workout, your best bet is to take a serving or two of a well-formulated pre-workout like Rainmaker.
Do Your Research Beforehand
At the end of the day, the most important thing to do before traveling is research and plan your trip. Use your phone or computer to scope out your destination’s offerings for supermarkets, hotels, gyms, restaurants, etc. This will help you prepare appropriately and figure out exactly what you'll be able to do (and not do) on your journey.
Ultimately, nothing is more nerve-wracking than traveling with no idea of what your options will be for food and keeping active. Give yourself adequate time to prepare; being in a pinch when packing for a trip often results in tension and forgetting important things. Rest assured, by following the tips in this article and planning ahead of time, you’ll be able to keep on track with your health and fitness goals.