Have you ever heard someone boasting about a vacation they just got back from, and in the same breath, talk about how much weight they gained? Don’t be that guy!
Traveling can easily interrupt your health and fitness routine, but with some simple tips you can incorporate exercise into your vacation without depriving yourself of fun and relaxation.
The best thing you can do is make a promise to yourself. Promise that you’ll make an effort to be active. Try to include one physical activity every day, even if it’s a ten minute workout. Integrating small amounts of activity will help you from falling too far off your fitness schedule and you’ll find it much easier to get back into your regular routine once you are home.
Keep everything light and simple. Do not over complicate your workouts when you are traveling. Try to incorporate fitness into your scheduled vacation activities. Or just set aside a few minutes every day to work out and you will be fine.
We have created the perfect travel workout routine for you. Why is it perfect for travel? It only takes ten minutes. There is zero equipment involved and no need for a gym. It can be done in any location you choose. It’s fun and effective! If you want a free copy of our workout plan, opt in with your email in our pop-up.
Are there any fitness and travel pros out there? We’d love to hear how you exercise and workout on vacation! Give us your tips in the comments below 💪
The Best Tips and Ideas for Travel Workouts
Avoid Public Transportation, Taxis and Car Rentals
Do you ever wonder why everyone in Europe is lean, healthy and beautiful? We attribute it to the fact that they walk and bike everywhere! We have no real proof of this, but it has to be related, right?
This is the easiest way to stay fit while traveling. Make it a challenge for yourself to walk everywhere you can.
The added bonus here is that you end up seeing and learning much more about the city this way. Getting out of a vehicle and onto your feet will change your perspective. You will have more contact with locals and you will have more opportunity to explore and discover new areas.
Search for the Best Nearby Trails and Go on a Hike
We always look for great hikes to do when we are traveling for one big reason – views! Hiking offers you the lookouts and landscapes that you will never see in the city center or even while driving.
So, you get the amazing views, and the extra exercise is just a bonus! It’s a lot easier to be active when you have a goal to work toward and beautiful things to look at along the way.
Go for a Run and Get Some Cardio In
The easiest way to incorporate a run is to wake up half an hour early and get outside. Make it easy on yourself by finding a beautiful spot to run, like a beach or a boardwalk.
A morning run will set you up well for the day and your workout will be out of the way so you have the day off to relax.
Find City Bike Rentals
This is our favourite thing to do when we visit a new city and bike rentals are available in practically every large city around the world. It’s simple to use – bike docking stations appear all over the city, just find one, grab a bike, cycle around wherever you wish and drop it off at any other docking station you see.
You can get a fairly inexpensive day pass and explore the entire city this way – and you will cover way more ground than you would on foot.
Choose a Fitness Related Excursion, Attraction or Tour
If you are willing to spend the big bucks on a guided excursion – pick something that involves some form of activity. You get much more out of the experience if you are actively involved in it.
Popular excursions you can find in many cities are cave adventures, rappelling, eco adventures, kite surfing, paddle boarding, kayak tours, surfing lessons, beach volleyball tournaments, snorkeling and scuba diving.
To avoid paying heaps of cash for snorkeling tours, just bring your own snorkel gear with you. For a great traveling snorkel set that is high quality but also lightweight, compact and has it’s own carrying bag, check out the PRODIVE Premium Dry Top Snorkel Set.
Or, if you are anything like me and have trouble breathing naturally when snorkeling, try the Cozia Snorkel Mask. If you haven’t seen these yet – they are incredible! The difference is that it is a full face snorkel mask. Although you will look a little strange wearing it, the full face mask allows you to breathe naturally through your nose and mouth, it gives you a 180° view, doesn’t fog up, keeps your face dry and keeps salt water out of your eyes. I’ve converted to this style of snorkel mask and I will never go back. Now all I need is a scuba mask that does the same thing.. 🤔
Have no money to travel? No worries! Just check out our posts on budget travel here:
‘How to Travel the World for Free’
‘How to Find Budget Accommodation and Lodging Anywhere in the World’
‘Things to do for Free While Traveling’
‘How to Maintain Your Food Budget While Traveling’
Pack the Best Lightweight Workout Equipment – Gear, Bands, Mats and Shoes
Having a few pieces of exercise equipment with you while you travel will amp up your workouts even more. If you are serious about your health and want to maintain your level of fitness while on vacation, these lightweight travel accessories are super easy to pack – even in a carry on bag.
WOD Nation Speed Jump Rope – I love the simplicity of a jump rope for exercise. It’s fun and effective. The WOD jump rope is a highly rated and budget friendly jump rope that is the perfect travel accessory. It comes in a variety of colours, has a free travel bag, is lightweight for your carry on luggage and has a lifetime warranty.
TOPLUS Foldable Travel Yoga Mat – An exercise mat allows you to workout anywhere you want to. Luckily, Toplus has made a foldable yoga mat just for travel. It is only 1/16 inch thick, folds up easily and comes with its own carrying bag.
TheraBand Resistance Bands – TheraBands are probably the most effective piece of exercise equipment that you can get for the price. The exercise options are endless and these bands are able to target any muscle in the body. The best part, these bands will take up zero weight and room in your luggage.
adidas Ultraboost Road Running Shoe – A big reason why people don’t work out on vacation is because they don’t have the proper footwear. These adidas runners are perfect for travel because they are lightweight and will pack almost flat in your luggage. These sneakers are a great travel option because they are multipurpose – use them in the gym, running, hiking or just sightseeing around the city.
Synergee Sliders – These sliders can be used in many different ways, and can make exercises like mountain climbers and lunges more challenging. They are perfect for your hotel room and are extremely lightweight to pack in your luggage.
Search for a Hotel With a Gym and Pool
When you are booking your hotel, take a close look at the amenities. Having a gym and pool available to you daily will help to keep you active while on vacation.
Wake up early for a quick half hour workout before you start your day.
Become a Member of a Travel Friendly Gym
If you are a frequent traveler, consider a gym membership to a large chain who offers a multi city pass. Having access to a full sized gym will ensure you maintain your fitness goals while you are away from home.
Most large chains will offer you access to all of their locations. Look into each chain specifically. Some allow access to all clubs for their regular membership price, and some will charge more for a multi city membership.
LA Fitness has 600+ clubs across the US and Canada. For $29.99 per month you get multi city club access.
24 Hour Fitness has 420+ clubs across US. If you are not a member, you can utilize their free 3 day pass while traveling. And, as the name says, all locations are open 24 hours – how convenient!
Anytime Fitness is a massive gym chain with over 4000 locations worldwide (Canada, US, Mexico, Europe, Asia, Australia and more). It also offers 24/7 access. There’s no excuses here, you can literally workout anywhere in the world!
Planet Fitness has 1,600+ locations across US and Canada. For $21.99 you get their multi city access membership.
Goodlife Fitness is Canada’s largest gym chain with over 350 locations. These gyms have all the cardio and weight lifting equipment you need, as well as free group classes. Many locations are open 24 hours. They have a free 3 visit pass for new members as well.
Another point, no matter where you are traveling, look around for local gyms and community centers. They often have a one time drop in fee or you can find a cheap drop in group class to join.
Find Exercise Related Activities on Craigslist
Craigslist is a worldwide classified ads website. Check out the Criagslist page for the city you are visiting. You can find tons of free and affordable activity ideas to do while on vacation.
A quick search on the San Francisco site, under the ‘community’ and ‘classes’ area, and I found free tennis lessons, hiking group meetups (great for solo travelers), free self defense and kickboxing classes and a $5 drop in yoga class.
Stay Hydrated and Pack a Refillable Travel Water Bottle
While you are staying active on vacation, you will need to stay hydrated on the go. Make sure to pack a refillable water bottle to keep up your water intake, reduce your sugary drinks and save you money on bottled beverages.
There are a few key things to look for when purchasing a good travel water bottle. Make sure that it is insulated, durable, leak proof and holds plenty of water. One water bottle that checks off all the boxes, and our personal favourite, is the Hydro Flask 32 oz. Water Bottle. Having a water bottle that you can trust to throw in a day pack will make you more likely to bring it with you everywhere you go.
Stay Fit on Vacation by Choosing Healthy Food, Snacks and Meals
Food is a huge part of your health and fitness level while on vacation. Even the best of us are tempted to just ‘let it all go’ on vacation and gorge like a king.
One of our best health tips for traveling is to pack snacks to bring with you wherever you go. If you have a healthy and convenient snack in your bag, you are less likely to opt for the ice cream cone, churro or slice of pizza you see on the street.
But be careful, many ‘grab and go’ snacks are extremely unhealthy. Look at the ingredients and avoid lots of added sugars, salt, oils and fillers. We have reviewed the best whole foods and convenient snacks to take with you in our post ‘Healthy Food Ideas for Snacks and Meals While Hiking’.
Here are our top choices for healthy pre-packaged snack options. We love them because they offer real ingredients, high quality energy, minimal sugar and preservatives, and are delicious:
- QUEST Protein Bars – we love QUEST bars because they have a high quality protein blend and no added sugar – instead they are sweetened with natural ingredients like stevia. They also have tons of fun flavours like Peppermint Bark, Pumpkin Pie and Chocolate Chip Cookie Dough.
- KRAVE Jerky – this is one of your best options when buying jerky. Due to the nature of jerky, most brands are high in additives and preservatives. Krave jerky has minimal ingredients, are minimally processed and has no artificial ingredients. And the best part is – they are delicious! And come in some unique flavours like Black Cherry BBQ and Chili Lime.
- Made in Nature Fruit Fusion Superberry Superfuel Blend – this is a healthier twist on the traditional trail mix. A mixture of cranberries, raisins, cherries, blueberries, goji berries, and zero preservatives make for a tangy treat! Check out this brand – they have loads of healthy snack options.
Learn more about how to eat healthy and save money on food when you are traveling with our food travel posts:
Your Quick 10 Minute, Full Body Workout – A Complete Bodyweight Routine With No Gym or Equipment Needed
So, are you ready to commit to staying fit while you travel? We hope we made it simple for you.
To get your free 10 minute full body workout routine that you can do anywhere, without any equipment, enter your email in our pop-up to be sent to the downloadable PDF.
Everyone has 10 minutes, even on vacation! And this workout can be done any place you like – in your hotel room, in a nearby park, on the beach – literally anywhere, no excuses!
This workout even allows a few seconds of rest between each exercise. But don’t rest too long. To make a 10 minute workout effective, it needs to be done quickly and intensely. Make sure to do the exercises in the order they appear on the infographic. They have been put in this order to seamlessly move between exercises to create a quick, efficient and effective workout.
If you have more than 10 minutes, use this as a circuit program and repeat as many times as you like.
Have you found other fun and unique ways to add exercise to your vacations? Let us know in the comments below! 😊
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