The unsexy-but-easy holiday travel plan for food and exercise
Whelp! Tis the season for travel, stress, eating, and a health routine with a big ol’ wrench in it!
But fear not, gentle reader—we can make a plan that doesn’t suck! (I make the most romantic promises, don’t I?)
✈️ Travel plan
First: Food.
Always target protein, fruits, and veggies.
During travel (plane, train, or automobile):
Eat a protein-forward, hearty meal beforehand
Pack some snacks: Jerky, fruit, protein bar
There is almost always a healthy-ish meal option if you look for it. Every culture has their version of meat n veg wrapped in carbs. Just don’t go for anything fried.
There are usually a la carte options like yogurt and fruit
While there’s absolutely no need to starve yourself, remember that hunger isn’t an emergency and you can usually wait a little while for a better food option
Post-travel (at your new location away from home):
Control what you can. You’re probably able to do a quick grocery run for some goal-worthy snack essentials (I always get greek yogurt, bananas, apples, and jerky or deli meats)
Load your plate up on protein and veggies whenever you can
Release what you can’t control: Eat slowly and enjoy the food!
PS. Easy on the booze, chief
Now: Exercise.
Try and move around as often as possible.
Movement options:
Walks walks walks! All the walking! Do it with the fam if you can tolerate them! Or use it as an excuse to escape the fam!
If you’ve got the downtime, a short bodyweight workout can feel awesome and keep your muscles engaged. This usually isn’t the time to try and get gains, and you won’t lose your gains in such a short period! So just crank out something like this:
Perform 2-3 rounds of each exercise to failure: Squats, pushups, planks
During travel, stand up as often as possible
Don’t overthink this, guys.
Aim for doing something and you’ll keep your momentum. Progress is not made or reversed in a handful of days. Enjoy the good food and company, and move around when you can because it feels good dammit.
Then—and this is important—pop back into your routine when you get home. It might feel a tad rusty, but get those wheels moving!
Love and muscles,
Mac
