Take Your Workout on Vacation

Working out is pretty easy when you have a gym nearby, but exercise takes a little more creativity when you are in the middle of nowhere – and we put this to the test just recently while on vacation.

When Steve and I were in the mountains with our friends, we wanted to burn off some of the extra calories we were consuming. While our friends scouted out the terrain, Steve started looking for heavy objects to use as fitness tools.

They grabbed medium-size rocks for shoulder raises and propane tanks for squat presses. They used heavy lumber to put on their shoulders for walking lunges and used rope for climbing and repelling. Before we knew it, we had a whole outdoor gym ready to make everyone sweat.

This is one advantage to functional training, like our BCx boot camp program. Since we don’t rely on weight machines to sculpt physiques in boot camp, our clients learn plenty of exercises they can do at home – or, like our friends, their home away from home.

The more functional exercises you learn, the more creative you can get with your workouts, no matter where you are. Even the smallest hotel gym can give you the space you need to create an effective workout if you have a good exercise library in your head.

Here are 5 tips to staying fit on your vaca:

1. Get a lay of the land. Look for surrounding paths, streets and trails. If you can drive on them, clock miles and create a route.

2. Make some fitness tools. Turn two one-gallon containers of water into 8lb dumbbells. Rocks, firewood, large containers of laundry detergent and even luggage can be used as used as weights.

3. Invest in small fitness tools. It’s great to have some portable fitness equipment, like jump rope and Bodylastics bands, that travel well and work great too.

4. Pack your tennies. There is one thing you need if you want to work up a sweat no matter what you do – a good pair of tennis shoes. I brought my Spira stability shoes, which are versatile and great for running too.

5. Plan ahead. If you want to have a good workout while on vacation, do some research before you hit the road. Google area gyms and look for cool tourist activities that keep you moving. Pick out a few workouts you can take with you, like the ones we create online for FitStudio.com or DesignerWhey.com.

Even if you go on vacation, that doesn’t mean you have to take a vacation from your workouts too!

Here is the workout Steve, and his friend Brian, did in the mountains.

[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ijd5KWrWwdk]

The Workout:
– Sprint Uphill
– 10 Burpees
– Climb Rope up 20 foot cliff
– Sprint Uphill
– Carry 20-40lb Objects
– Jump the Ranger
– Race Downhill
– Lumber Lunges
– Climb Rope
(repeat)