It’s so easy to go off track with your workouts and healthy eating plans when you travel. 

Those red-eye flights, the back-to-back business meetings, the client luncheons… they all seem to conspire to thwart your good efforts. It can be enough to make you want to set your entire plan aside until you’re done traveling!

But of course, if travel is part of your job, it’s only a matter of time until you’re right back in this same position.

Don’t lose all the good progress you’ve made thus far!

All you need is a plan, and today, we’re going to look at the three most important aspects of travel workouts. 

Keep these in mind before your next trip and set yourself up for success, even when you’re away from home.

Download our Ultimate Fat Loss Workout now and learn the exact steps you need to take to start getting results.

Okay, obviously you can’t work out on a trip if you don’t plan to do so, but believe it or not, this might be the only thing holding you back: you just didn’t plan right.

Some hotels have gyms, some have access to running trails, but remember that hotel gyms might be limited in their equipment or even hours of operation. 

It’s better to take responsibility yourself and plan out your own workouts as though you wouldn’t have access to a gym.

Here’s what you need:

1.  Workout Clothes - You wouldn’t believe how much this matters! Remember to pack some clothes for the gym and this will ensure you actually work out.

2.  Portable Workout Equipment – The perfect travel exercise equipment is lightweight, doesn’t require much space, and can still give you a full workout. 

Think along the lines of the TRX suspension training system, resistance bands, and a rolling stick or foam roller to help with sore muscles.

3.  Training Apps – Tracking your workouts on a smartphone app can not only keep you accountable, but also help you gauge your progress even when you’re away. 

We recommend an app like Sworkit.

As they say when it comes to food: fail to prepare, prepare to fail! 

You have much less control over your food choices when you travel, and it’s so easy to overdo it. 

However, there are a few things you can do to make sure you’re staying with your nutrition plan.

Here are your best bets when planning ahead for healthy eating:

1.  Download the Hotel Breakfast Guide – This guide will help you navigate those complimentary hotel breakfasts the right way. Start your day off by fueling up on the good stuff.

2.  Protein Shaker and Powder – A lot of travel food options are, let’s face it, carb heavy. 

There’s nothing wrong with carbs – you need them as part of your daily intake – but if you’re relying mainly on carbs for the duration of a three-day business trip, you’re going to feel terrible by the end of it. 

Bring your protein shaker and powder so you can make quick shakes on the go.

3.  Protein Snack Bars – These are great because they fit right into a handbag or laptop case. Remember to bring a few of these healthy options with you anytime you travel. We recommend Quest Bars (specifically Cinnamon Roll, Double Chocolate Chunk, or Coconut Cashew, because these do not use sucralose as a sweetener), RXBars, or ONE Basix.

This might be the most important piece of the puzzle. As you can probably imagine, travel is already stressful. 

Add onto that the stress of a highly important meeting or a company emergency, and this begins feeling like a pretty good time to put your health on the back burner.

Don’t you fall for it!

Skipping your workout isn’t the way to deal with added stress -- exercising is! Get those endorphins going, tire yourself out so you actually sleep at night regardless of jet lag, and boost your mood.

Here are three things to keep in mind while traveling:

1.  Manage Your Stress Level – A little bit of meditation can go a long way. Consider downloading an app like Headspace, which will guide you through mindfulness exercises. 

Mindfulness not only helps you relax, but it can also help you refocus on your health goals.

2.  Have a Game Plan – There’s a lot you can do before traveling to help ensure that you keep up with your workouts, and a lot of it has to do with mindfulness. 

Simply doing something like adding your workouts to your calendar or the Sworkit app before you leave can help you set your intentions. 

Also take a moment to consider what you’ll do if you miss a workout. Will you reschedule for another day? Make it up a different time? Give this some thought.

3.  Have a Backup Nutrition Plan – We’ve talked a bit already about making good choices and planning alternate meals.

But remember, another pitfall of traveling is missed meals, too.

Missing a meal can leave you feeling sluggish or overly hungry at the following meal. 

It’s best to plan ahead for this as well by having some meal replacement bars on hand.

Planning ahead really is the secret to continued fitness and weight loss success while traveling. 

Make your workout gear and nutrition options as much of a packing priority as your electronics and your suits, and you’ll be good to go!

Want to learn how to put together a complete exercise program that burns fat and builds lean muscle even while traveling?

Download our Ultimate Fat Loss Workout now and learn the exact steps you need to take to start getting results. This will include:

• Why strength training is CRITICAL for fat loss
• Our "Complementary SuperSet" model of training
• Specific workout recommendations for every leve
• Videos showing you correct form and tempo

Have a question? Please post your questions on our Facebook Page.

Mint Condition Fitness is the leading personal training studio in Los Gatos for successful men and women to become the best versions of themselves.