A woman drinking a pre-workout before going on a fitness-oriented trip
You’ve probably heard the saying, “calories gained on vacation or a business trip don’t count.” While there’s nothing wrong with feasting on a delicious campfire steak in the woods or a midnight pizza at your hotel, you have to balance those calories with exercise and proper nutrition. Fitness-oriented travel has become a trending buzzword in the health industry that emphasizes exercising during trips and maintaining a proper fitness regimen while enjoying all the pleasures of your trip.
So, whether you’re headed to Millaa Millaa in Queensland for a camping trip or going for a jog at the Kangaroo Point Cliffs Park while on a business trip, we’ll share the importance of fitness-oriented travel so you can sleep and eat better and remain in tip-top shape in this post.
Importance of Exercising During Trips
Fitness-oriented travel is not a one-size-fits-all type of thing. There’s a lot you can do wherever you are in Australia to get your blood pumping, like hiking, jogging, cycling, swimming, kayaking, and hitting the gym near your hotel. Here’s how you’ll benefit from this physically and mentally:
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Keeping Your Waist in Check
Gaining weight while on vacation on a business trip is natural as most people eat more than they usually do at home. Many people feel that every meal during this period should be nothing short of a feast, while others are limited to consuming unhealthy meals. So even if you overindulge in delicacies or your favourite comfort foods, exercising can help you combat weight gain. After all, gaining and losing weight is nothing more than a mathematical equation between calories taken vs calories burned. A fitness-oriented itinerary means you can munch on a cheeseburger guilt-free by burning those calories before the day’s end.
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Improving Mental Health
Travel is a great way to improve mental health as it helps release stress, anxiety, and depression. Add an effective fitness regime to the mix, and you can enhance the overall experience by allowing you to unplug while improving strength and mobility fully. Eliminating mental exhaustion can also lead to a deeper sense of happiness so you can make the most of your trip anywhere in Australia.
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Build Awareness and Mindfulness
Fitness-oriented travel is a great way to strengthen the mind and improve cognitive functions, such as memory retention, problem-solving, attention, and decision making. Therefore, you can remain more present at the moment at all times during and after your trip.
How to Maintain Health and Fitness During Travel
Let’s face it; you’re unlikely to go to a hotel gym or make/eat a salad while you’re on a trip for business or pleasure. However, you can plan your itinerary in a way that can help you maintain your fitness during travel. Here’s how:
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Pack for Fitness
Before your trip, make sure you pack like you’ll be heading to the fitness facilities or playing a sport wherever you’re going. Your travel workout gear can include:
- Athletic shoes
- Track/swimsuit
- Yoga mat
- Headphones
- Pre-workout supplements for uninterrupted nutrition (check reviews of the top pre-workouts in Queensland)
- Jump rope
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Keep Moving
Whether you’re taking the bus, train, or plane, or driving your vehicle, travel usually involves sitting for long periods, which is bad for health. Therefore, you should fit in some physical activity whenever you’re on your feet, such as walking after dinner or taking a stroll around the hotel lobby. If you’re going on an outdoor adventure, take a break and stretch out to relax your muscles. Treating exercise as an essential part of your trip and following your conventional pre-exercise routine, such as drinking pre-workouts or eating fruits, can help motivate you to take the time out and move those muscles. You don’t have to follow your normal hardcore routine. Consider these ways to remain fit and active during your trip:
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Brisk Walk
A brisk walk is essentially walking at a faster pace, which you can easily do indoors and outdoors. For example, instead of taking the lift at the hotel, take the stairs. After dinner, walk outdoors and check out the local parks and trails.
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Skip Rope
If you’re not in the mood of heading out, you can use a jump rope in your room and burn up to 400+ calories in an hour.
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Jumping Jacks
Jumping jacks are a great way to stretch and work every part of your body. All you need is a few sets of 10-15, and you’re all set for the day.
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Go Swimming
If you like spending some time in the water, all you need is a pair of shorts or a swimsuit, and you’re all set to strengthen nearly every muscle in your body by hitting the hotel pool or a natural water body in the vicinity.
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Play a sport
Do you enjoy cricket or Australian rules football? You can look for sports meet-ups in the area that interest you.
Final Thoughts
Finding the time, space, or energy to exercise while on vacation or a business trip can be more challenging than ever, considering you are off your usual diet or work routine and don’t have access to your usual workout equipment or gym. Fortunately, you can still manage planning your itinerary smartly. For example, if you know you’ll be eating unhealthy meals on your trip, carry your favourite pre-workout to maintain proper nutrition. To remain active, you can follow any of the options mentioned above.
Whether you’re taking a trip for business or pleasure, fitness-oriented travel is a smart way to maintain a healthy lifestyle. It helps you improve and maintain both your physical and mental health without having you compromise on your temporary pleasures and indulges.
