BJ Gaddour, CSCS, YFS is a local Milwaukee personal trainer and fitness boot camp instructor. He has helped a lot of people formulate successful strategies to maintain their fitness and body weight when vacationing or on the road.
According to Gaddour, “Nothing is worse than bringing back vacation memories in the form of unwanted fat storage in trouble spot areas that makes you feel sluggish, bloated, and unattractive. In all of my own personal failures, I have truly gained a lot of perspective regarding what it takes to be a lean traveler.”
Below are Gaddour’s top 3 travel fitness tips to help you maintain your overall health, performance, and body composition when away from the structure of home:
Lean Traveler Tip#1- Commit to Performing Short 10-20 Minute Maintenance Workouts First Thing In The Morning Each Week
Time is not an excuse. We all have at least 10-20 minutes to crank it before we start our day. Trust me on this- this brief workout first thing in the morning will set the tone for the rest of your day. Besides being your energy pill to attack the day with vigor, this workout can serve as some damage control if you to decide to indulge in some foods that deviate from your nutrition plan. But they key is to do it first thing in the morning because I personally guarantee you that’s the only time you can count on getting it done when enjoying the sights and sounds of vacation.
Lean Traveler Tip#2- Use Body Weight and Resistance Band Exercises That You Can Do Anywhere
All you’ll need is your body and one resistance band to get the job done. During maintenance weeks for our clients, we highly recommend using mostly body weight based exercises with the exception of some resistance band exercises to get that pulling component in since it is often very difficult to access body weight rows and pull-ups when on the road. Body weight based exercises allow for some much needed rest and de-loading for the muscles and joints, in addition to the fact that they can go through customs when you are vacationing!
Lean Traveler Tip#3- Bring Portable Fat-Burning Snacks
Over the years, I have built a list of go-to lean traveler foods that have been absolutely critical to maintaining my fitness and here they are: Mixed raw nuts (almonds, cashews, pistachios, pecans, walnuts, etc.), string cheese, protein powder and/or amino acids, organic deli meat (unsweetened, low in salt), and fruit and raw veggies. Use these fat-burning, muscle-building foods to stay full and leave less room for all of the other junk food options that surround us all on a daily basis.
