Andrew and I love to be active and do our best to stay in shape. When we travel though this can be challenging, especially when our travels often include great meals and visits to breweries and wineries. Add to this that I am trying to lose a little weight, and traveling could quickly undo our fitness efforts!
For me, awareness is the key. Every day I pay attention to my level of activity and my food intake. The more I know about my caloric intake and output, the better I can make decisions on what to eat. Daily, I use
myfitnesspal.com to track what I eat on my iPhone. Their database includes nutrition info for thousands of foods, and there is a simple feature to let you add your own meals. When you add cardio or strength training, the site calculates your net calories and gives you an easy to read display of your remaining calories for the day. I love seeing how many more calories I can eat as a result of my cardio!
I also use
mapmyrun.com to track not just my runs and bike rides, but also my daily walks with Zoey. You'd be surprised how quickly that adds up! Yesterday on our afternoon walk I burned almost 200 calories (admittedly, it tired poor Zoey out a little - she started protesting toward the end). Because mapmyrun.com tracks my pace, it's generally a more accurate count of calories burned than myfitnesspal.com.
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| mommy, I'm tired and want to lay by the water bowl |
Both of these tools are easy to take with you when you travel, and do the same things you do at home. A few other tools I've been known to take on trips with me:
- Resistance bands a great for strength training. My friend Jacquelyn at fitsouffle.com recommends PowerSystems bands, and I agree they are great.
- Again Faster makes a great jump rope that is small and easily fits in a carryon.
- The Fletcher Braided Towel is also easy to pack if you're working on upper back and shoulder strength.
As a Pilates teacher, it's easy for me to plop down in my hotel room and knock out some Mat work for a quick fitness pick me up, but sometimes it's not that easy. It sounds trite, but planning ahead really is the key. Before you leave, here are some things to consider:
- If you're sightseeing, can you walk it? This is one of our favorite things to do. You're not only staying active, but walking through different neighborhoods is one of the best ways to get to know a city.
- Before your trip, find some cool walking or biking tours. My favorite part of our trip to Maui was Cruiser Phil's volcano bike tour.
- How many workouts do you want to fit in during your trip? Be realistic about how many runs or workouts you will do and set a plan for when you'll do them.
- Does your hotel have a fitness center - and will you use it? Let's face it, not all fitness centers are equal!
- Map out a running route ahead of time, especially if the weather will be good or if you're near a picturesque location. Imagine watching the sun come up over a beautiful lake or river.
- Confirm with your hotel that your route is safe. Beautiful or not, let's avoid any muggings, please.
- Make sure you pack the right clothes. That includes sneakers, and plenty of socks and sports bras!
Travel is about experience, and I never want to deprive myself of food and drink experience when I'm a tourist. A little forethought about staying active helps me be able to enjoy myself and take in everything my destination has to offer.
