Exercising on the Go

It is really important for travelers to keep up some fitness for stability at those times you need it; strength, stamina, flexibility, and balance. It all comes into play when you jump on and off trains with bags, challenging muddy hiking, you name it. I noticed I was fine hiking and waking when the going was smooth, but on uneven or slippery surfaces, my lack of fitness was showing. Ankle or knee injuries while traveling would be a big drag, so I got going with a fitness regime without excuses. Even if you are only traveling for a two-week vacation, keeping up some level of fitness may be important to you. For the long term traveler, it is critical. Some of the means we have employed follow.

Nothing like a hilly hike to get your blood flowing

Walking

Walking while traveling is inevitable. Still, we go out of our way to walk. We have walked over two miles to a grocery store and carried the groceries back the same way, even though we had a car. I hope to never get to the point where I count steps for exercise. We athletes measure exercise in miles and hours, not steps. Our phones measure steps without our consent these days, and I have noticed we usually average 20,000 to 30,000 when we are visiting a city; that is probably about 10K to 15K. Probably the same when we are hiking, maybe more. And of course dog sitting involves dog walking. Walking is not a problem for us, but that is not enough to maintain real fitness; it does not touch most of your leg muscle groups and none anywhere else. Do Not Kid Yourself: walking does not equal adequate exercise.  But, it is the best way to exerience travel, be it urban setting or wilderness.

No Free fitness club memberships.

I have seen a lot of travel bloggers recommend using the free one-week passes that a lot of gyms will offer as a means to get new customers. I cannot in good conscience do this. If I can buy a short term membership, that would be fine, but I cannot condone taking advantage of a business by taking a free membership when there is no way I will be joining. 

Hotel gyms and pools

Most hotels these days have some type of gym. Usually small and poorly equipped. When I choose a hotel, I take notice of the gym pictures. Note: there is always a mirror in these pictures making the facility look twice as big as it is. But sometimes, a hotel facility can be excellent. We have been pleasantly surprised about how many hotels in some countries have full sized pools designed for real swimming. Australia and Ireland especially. Another perk to look for is the hotel that partners with a real fitness club catering to the community. When we find these, I can participate in my favorite fitness activity: group classes, spin workouts, and sometimes yoga too. 

Biking offers leg exercise, while kayaking is a great upper body workout. There could not be a better workout venue than a pristine bay

Kayaking and bicycling.

We rent bikes and kayaks a lot. For fun and for exercise. Better yet, we often find hotels that loan bikes for free, or air B&B’s with bikes, kayaks and sometimes stand up paddle boards as part of the offering. Bikes or kayaks as part of the accommodation package is a big plus. The cost of equipment rental is steep; renting bikes in New Zealand cost about twice what we pay for our car rental (and then we need two of them). 

Podcasts, TV exercise shows and Online subscriptions

There are oodles of exercise programs available for casting to a smart TV, or just on phones or tablets. Some are subscriptions, some are free. Only thing to beware, sometimes USA content does not work in certain countries. And even using VPN, your location is visible and may prevent your access. There is always something local and in English available. With these, you get the feeling of camaraderie, and you do not have to curate your own music. During the covid lockdown in New Zealand the government ponied up the cost to have an exercise program on TV every morning. It made a great routine, I never missed. Some we recorded to do over again. If you cannot record it is even better, because it forces you to commit to the routine. 

Yoga and Stretching

Stretching cannot be overemphasized for the traveler. If you do anything new, you need to stretch. If you are repeating the same, you need to stretch after. After long drives, or flights, you really need a stretch. Better yet, during. If you have trouble sleeping, try a nightly stretching routine. If you have trouble getting going in the morning, try an AM stretching routine. Stretching is easy anyplace, inside or out. No excuse. Yoga is stretching. If you are opposed to the idea of yoga, call it stretching. If you fancy yourself mindful, call it yoga. Whatever you call it, just do it. A lot. You will thank me. As we age, if you lose flexibility, it is really hard to get it back. The loss of flexibility really makes you look and feel old, because it is a major component of being old. And it makes you vulnerable to a lot of other maladies. If you don’t like to stretch, dial it back and only work to maintain your flexibility; you do not need to fight your body to increase flexibility, just do not lose any. Balance and flexibility are components of fitness probably more important than cardio and strength. I will touch on balance later.

Biking is a great way to get further afield, and fantastic exercise too

Exercise where ever, when ever. 

When other outlets are not available to us, I have a do-it-myself exercise plan. Before embarking on this journey, I used to be a pretty dedicated gym rat; my workout of choice was a group exercise class. To loud music, a coach moves you through a variety of exercise movements with various weights, elastic bands, mats and body movements. In an hour you get every muscle worked along with cardio, core and stretching. I have borrowed this format. Many of the exercises use just body weight for resistance – I have plenty of that. If I need weights, I find rocks or bricks. My mat is a patch of grass, or carpet. When we left home, I took a handled exercise band, but it did not survive the first luggage purge. This Christmas I bought another; it is an invaluable tool for the fit traveler. 

I prefer Tabata or HIIT (High Intensity Interval Training), because I get anaerobic cardio and strength training at the same time. 

Tabata

Tabata is a regime where you do one exercise (say jumping jacks) as hard as you can for just 20 seconds, rest ten seconds, do it again for 20 seconds. For 8 repeats. Sounds easy, but lactic acid builds, the last few hurt. In my triathlon training days, we would call this a lactate tolerance workout. Four minutes of work for each exercise really adds up. I do three or four Tabata sets, then slow down with some strength exercises, then hit another 2-4 sets of tabata. Followed by core (for example planks or crunches). After this, you will feel good all day. Any movement or exercise can be done Tabata style, bicep curls, push-ups, crunches, you just have to do it fast. I like to do hard cardio, which tends to work the legs: squat jumps, star jacks, burpees, speed skaters, mountain climbers, high knee jumps, lunge jumps or uphill running. I make sure to do some jumps, some lateral, and some lunging exercises. In no time, my legs start to feel strong in a well balanced way. It really helps with hiking uneven terrain or hauling luggage over uneven surfaces.

Much can be done with an available step

HIIT (High Intensity Interval Training)

HIIT (High Intensity Interval Training) is another bang-for-your-buck exercise regime. I pick three different exercises. Say jumping jacks, burpees and speed skaters. Then do them in rotation for 30 seconds each, about 10 seconds in between to get into the new position, rotate through the three exercises for 3 or 4 rotations. Work up to 45 seconds, or even one minute intervals. Rest a minute, then start another grouping of three exercises. For example: jumping jacks, speed skaters and burpees for one set. Then squat jumps, mountain climbers and lunge jumps for another. I do four sets, then some strength exercises, then two to four more HIIT sets. Followed by 5 minutes of core, and stretching.

Repeaters are my favorite move. Surprisingly, the stationery leg is getting the workout

 I alternate Tabata and HIIT to keep things interesting and shake up my heart with the different interval lengths. Changing out the exercises daily is imperative for both HIIT and Tabata. Otherwise you omit hitting all the muscle groups and your body would get used to the routine. Most importantly, you will get bored and lose your dedication.

Core Exercises. 

For core work, I do a minute each of 5 or 6 different exercises back to back without rest in between. Versions of planks, crunches, and pilates exercises. You can always incorporate some core exercise into either HIIT or Tabata too. Again, changing up the exercises every day is key.

*Note, if any of my exercise names are unfamiliar to you, google them. You will find descriptions, pictures and videos galore. I am not including links because I do not want to step on any copyrights and you can look them up just as easy as me. 

Benches are great gyms

Exercise Props.

There is just no way we can carry exercise gear around on our travels. Obviously weights…are weighty. I get around this by finding objects to use. 

  • Bricks are great; if you find a pile of old bricks, there are bound to be half ones too. It will amaze you how easy bricks are to find; they are everywhere. 
  • Rocks and stones in different sizes. 
  • Filled up water bottles in different sizes is another. I use a two liter bottle as a kettlebell. The diet coke is really fizzy after.
  • Long handled tools like rakes and shovels. They weigh a bit and are useful for any exercise you would do with a long weighted bar or barbell. Military press while lunge walking is something I have been seen to do with two shovels held opposing. Balanced one leg or lunge one-arm rows are one of my favorites. I cannot get the weight I need, so the unbalanced long handle adds some needed difficulty. 
  • Curbs and stairs are good substitutes for step workouts. I really like repeaters and need a step or hill to do them. If the curb is too low, I add a couple bricks. 
  • Boulders. Boulders mimic bosu. Without the give, but the uneven surface adds another level of balance required.
  • Benches. I love a good bench. I use them to do tricep dips, and because I am not strong at push-ups, I do pushups on the different levels: bench seat and back of the bench. Benches are great places to put down your stuff. And best point about benches: they are often overlooking pretty views, making them a perfect outdoor gym venue. 
  • Windows. I am keen to watch my form. If I do not, it will degenerate over time. So I really miss those full length mirrors in the gym. As a substitute, I watch my reflection in windows whenever I can. Really, I am not staring at myself for the vanity. 

Balance

Balance is something none of us can afford to lose. Once you do, it is hard to get back, like flexibility. Following my routine of double-for-my-money exercise, balance work is really easy to add into my fitness routine. Most of my strength exercises I do one legged. Sometimes move your balanced leg in time with your reps; either flexing at the knee or straight leg raises: to the front, back or sides. Military presses, bicep curls, tricep exercises, all done one legged or in a balance pose. Then there is all the waiting in line you do on vacation. We do it on one leg. Try riding an elevator on one leg. Just remember to do the other leg too.