This year, My family and I have been traveling more than we ever have. Partly due to helping our son look for colleges, but regardless, we’ve been on the road a lot. Since my wife and I have owned Body Basics my schedule has been 95% the same. I work Monday through Friday and workout ever day. This year, I’ve had to adapt to traveling and figuring out how to keep my fitness level where I want it to be in light of time away from my studio. Here’s 4 tips I’ve come up with to help me stay on track. I call them my 4 R’s.
1) Ramp up my program
If I have a trip coming up, I like to plan ahead. I typically do strength training and my programs can be periodized. Basically that means, for 10-12 weeks I work with lighter weights for more reps and build to very heavy weights and low reps. This periodized type of training can fatigue your central nervous system (CNS) to the point it requires a period of rest to let it recover. So, I ramp up my program and get the most fatigue right before my trip.
2) Recover
Since I ramp up my program to create the most amount of fatigue right before my trip, my traveling time can now be used for active recovery. It doesn’t mean I simply don’t workout while I’m gone, but I don’t have to lift heavy or do strength training to keep my progress going in the right direction. My trip functions as my normally planned recovery period.
3) Run, Cardio and Body Weight exercises
Now that my focus is on active recovery, I stay active by running, hiking and doing body weight exercises. I still want to move my body through all the ranges of motion, but my focus isn’t heavy lifting. In fact, I’ve found it’s helpful to try new things and use this time to experiment with stuff I don’t normally do. So, even though the “R” is for run, I’ll try something new, do some cardio and use my body in a different way than I normally would. That’s not to say, if I find a gym I won’t use it. I will, but It’s still try new things and won’t stick to my typical program.
4) Return
When I get back, I typically give myself a week to get back into a heavy strength cycle. I find – especially as I’m in my 40’s—I need a bit extra time before I’m at 100% effort again. If I lift to heavy to quick, I can get pretty sore. It’s amazing how just taking 1-2 weeks off can feel.
Next time you travel, try these 4 “R”s. I think you’ll find them physically beneficial. It will also feel good mentally. You won’t feel like your letting yourself down or falling behind since you have a plan and your trip fits into your plan.