That time has come, time to travel. Time to relax and just enjoy yourself to the fullest on your vacation, but while on this beautiful stress-free time many of us ask to ourselves how do I stay fit or just healthy during my vacation time? I'm not gonna pretend like I'm the fittest person on the planet while at home nor during vacation, and that I maintain all my fitness goals. Let's be honest, when traveling to an exotic country with delicious foods the last thing we are all thinking is "how many carbs does each bite have?" or "I'm gonna workout today".
However, after indulging in such deliciousness we do think "damn when I get back I'm gonna have to work my ass off to work all this food off!"
So I've come up with a way to balance the relaxation time of your vacation and indulging in delicious foods without breaking your fitness goals or just not packing extra pounds.
Get up early.
Yes already you are thinking, "What's wrong with this guy telling me to get early on my vacation days", but this is a great way to get up and start moving from early in the morning. Not just does this get you moving it also gives you the chance to stretch out your day, now instead of just having the afternoon to do your planned activities you have all day. On top of this, you get time to eat a proper breakfast and even do some yoga if you are into that kind of things if not just read a book, clear your mind, and meditate. After all the brain is, also a muscle and using it helps you burn some extra carbs
Drink Tons of Water
We all know drinking lots of water is healthy for you, therefore make sure you keep that up while you are traveling. It will keep you full, hydrated, and away from drinking things like soda or super sweet "fruit" juice. Most places have bottled water easily accessible in grocery stores, but if not, consider investing in a quality filtering water bottle.
Get Outdoors
If you're in a hot place like the Caribbean or super cold location during winter (Iceland) then you might want to stay indoors in your hotel all day, every day, but that defeats the whole purpose of going on vacation.
Therefore, get creative with your activities and get outdoors. If you're at the beach go for a walk in the mornings or to watch the sunset. If you're in the mountains go for a hike, and if you're in a winter wonderland go skiing or snowboarding but get up and be active. These activities are not exercise, to say but will get your heart rate up and get little sweat going. Read our 5 Amazing Things To Do in Costa Rica
Walk around. Walk A lot
When traveling something I love doing is WALKING. It is a great way to get around. So I recommend you to walk more, instead of constantly calling a taxi or an uber/lift or any form of transportation try walking. Walking will work a sweat and you will get to get more familiar with the place you are in. Of course, walk with precaution and follow our Tips To Stay Safe While Traveling Abroad
Walking will get your heart pumping, also you will be able to meet local, make friends, get to know about shops, tours, or restaurants you would normally not find on the internet, and on top of that, you will get to save money.
Eat With Moderation
I'm not a nutritionist, and trust me I know that it's difficult to control your diet while you are traveling. My two cents worth of advice is moderation. Don't ever refused yourself the one and only chance to try a something you've never had before with the excuse "I'm on a diet". If you do this, what's another way will you know what a Bandeja Paisa from Medellin, Colombia taste like? Or mango sticky rice from Thailand? Or a real Canadian Poutine? Or I can just keep going with all delicious food, but my point is it's all part of the experience of traveling, but just be mindful that maybe, just maybe you shouldn't eat those 10 pizzas from Italy on your own no matter how delicious they are.
If nutrition is more of a struggle than motivating yourself to workout, do your own grocery shopping. It's a great way to eat local and scan the shelves for items you might not be able to find at home.
Workout if you Can
If you decide to stay in a Hotel, keep in mind that most hotels have a workout facility. Therefore if you're the type of person that needs a gym to be able to get some reps in then go ahead and take advantage of the gym. While in Colombia, my cousins and I rented an Airbnb in which the building included a work out facility.
Therefore, we took advantage to get our "Fit on!" As some may say. Therefore if you have some free time take advantage of those type of perks, and if you don't know if your hotel or Airbnb has access to a gym and you need one just ask worst that can happen is they say no or they recommend you where to go. If not I also recommend you to do workouts with your own body weight, much better in my opinion when you're traveling.
If you have never used Airbnb read this and get a discount: Using AirBnB When Traveling.
Go Dancing
I'm going to finish the list with this one. It kinda explains itself. What is more fun than dancing a night away in a salsa fest, or reggae or even hip-hop or electric music? It gets the blood pumping and the body moving. Dancing is a freaking GREAT workout, even if you aren't big into it or good at it. If you're in a Latin American country try taking some quick salsa lessons.
They are cheap and amazing for when you get back home to brag to your friends that you're a new salsa pro! If you're not into the lessons just go to the salsa discos and dance away, people will not mind and they will teach you some tricks on the spot but I do recommend to at least YouTube the music so you know what you're doing into. As well as go to cultural events if there is any on the time of the year, for example, the Costa Rican Afro-Caribbean day on August 31 of every year in Puerto Limon. A Quick clip below of it when Traveling Ticos visited.
Dont forget to read Travel Tips for Newbies if your a first time Traveler.
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