This is one of the big difference between travelers and “air commuters”: Travelers think about thing like exercise. They think long-term in terms of travel, and invest their time accordingly. These are the folks you see running on the beach, not laying down and tanning beside it.
The good news is, there are lots of gyms all over the world now. Even if a “gym” is just a free weights set in the basement of some hostel, you have a good chance of finding one wherever you go. Heck, I even see airports with gyms nowadays! So you shouldn’t ever think to yourself, “I don’t have time or space to exercise!” That’s just an excuse.
Before you jump up in the comments and start comparing me to that lady on Facebook, just hear me out. Exercise is important, and travel shouldn’t be an excuse to neglect it. You don’t need a ton of equipment to get decent exercise, and you don’t even need a lot of time.
In fact, I wanted to pass on this workout to you all to help encourage you all to stay fit while traveling. It only takes 15 minutes, and it was designed by a doctor to help your body fight off diseases and prevent future ailments. Because really, who wants to be dealing with health issues while traveling? No one, that’s who.
So to do this Fitocracy workout, you’ll need to use some dumbbells at an appropriate amount of weight for you. They’re often included at hotels, or at any local health club where you can stop in for a spell. But once you have them, just do these exercises in order:
- 10 Dumbbell Bench Presses
- 10 One-Arm Dumbbell Rows
- 10 Dumbbell Squats
- 10 Dumbbell Deadlifts
- 10 Dumbbell Lunges
Repeat the circuit after 30 seconds rest, and keep going until you hit 15 minutes. You don’t need a lot of room, and you sure don’t need a lot of equipment. So why not give it a shot?
Look, I’m not saying you should give up all the fun while traveling because you need to be responsible and perfectly health-conscious 100% of the time. I know I could never take that advice, because I like sleep and beer too much. So I won’t give that advice.
What I will say is this: When your body’s not your main problem, traveling’s a lot less stressful than when it is. Living and working anywhere means that you have to provide for yourself as if anywhere could be your home. And if that means stretching in the airport or lifting weights in your hostel’s basement, do it. It’ll make the rest of the trip much less stressful.
What do you do for exercise when you travel?
Pris says:
These are actually very helpful! thank you for posting 🙂
Wendy says:
Interesting! I will try to do it, I spend a lot of time working 🙂 thank you!
Laura says:
Shaky arms = great workout! This ranks as one of my ftvroiae routines, period. I love the combination of chest and arm exercises; it’s a different twist on the typical separation of arm and chest/back workouts. It hits all the spots that I want to work and improve on. And the video is so helpful to make sure I’m doing the moves correctly!
Libby Tucker says:
Glad to hear it!