On the go for business or vacation and don’t want to fall behind on your fitness routine? Get a great workout regardless of your gym setting with three simple steps and improve your travel workouts immediately, giving you more time for work or play.
Before we dive in, a quick note on equipment: understanding your equipment options is vital to managing your travel workouts. Hotel gyms offer a plethora of machine based equipment, BUT most of them are worth skipping (except the cable pulley stacks). Why?
- Machines require less coordination and balance
- You sit on your ass enough; there is no need to workout that way
- Joint stabilizers are minimally trained
For a more effective workout, follow these three tips:
Travel Tip #1: Stop training small muscles first
If you want big results then train the biggest muscles first: trunk, hips and shoulders. I warm up with standing ab exercises on the cable machine, or I often bring bands with me that I can loop onto something.
Travel Tip #2: If you’re not breaking a sweat, you’re not training
Burning calories releases heat, so if you’re not sweating then you’re not burning fat. I keep my rest periods as short as possible for two reasons:
- Keeping rest periods short will improve your time to recover and raise your conditioning level.
- I don’t want to waste time; the more I can do in one hour, the stronger I become.
Travel Tip #3: Be creative
Like I said before, every gym is different and if you look at what you can’t do then you’re focusing on the negative, which will make for a bad workout. Embrace the challenge, and say, “How can I train legs today with no barbell?” The answer is simple- I will goblet squat to a low bench or box and rep out 60 second per set. Rest and repeat for a few sets. So be creative and think outside the box!
Bonus Video: Learn the Goblet Squat