Exercise in travel days

Hi! I travel for work (fly and drive) nearly every week. I’d love some tips and ideas about how to fit in exercise when I’m flying 4 hours. I’m pooped my after my first travel day and then it’s all downhill from there 😕

Thanks for any suggestions!!!!

Marianne

Replies

  • Cherimoose
    Cherimoose Posts: 5,208 Member
    What is your issue, a lack of time? No equipment? No motivation?
    And what is your usual exercise routine?
  • DancingMoosie
    DancingMoosie Posts: 8,619 Member
    Since airports usually advise you to be there an hour or so before your flight, there's usually time to make a few laps around the airport. I walk my wheeled carry-on around a few times and just look around until it's time to line up to board. You could also get up early and workout before your trip. Or swim in a hotel pool, use the fitness room, take a walk...
  • Motorsheen
    Motorsheen Posts: 20,508 Member
    Stay in hotels with good gyms.... or walk the hotel's stairwell(s).
  • apullum
    apullum Posts: 4,838 Member
    I walk laps in airports. Phoenix Terminal 4 is my favorite place for walking while traveling.
  • lg013
    lg013 Posts: 215 Member
    Hotels with gyms are a godsend.

    I always google airport workouts online and get a good hour of one in before my flight. Lots of creative ways people are finding to use what’s in an airport to work out.
  • Machka9
    Machka9 Posts: 25,619 Member
    I've covered several kilometres in airports waiting for flights.

    And yes, hotels with gyms are great!
  • kshama2001
    kshama2001 Posts: 28,052 Member
    edited July 2019
    Having a job in 2000 that required a lot of travel inspired me to created and memorize my own yoga flow so I didn't have to rely on teachers or DVDs.

    I've walked and done yoga in airports. At the hotel, I've done yoga in my room and walked outside. I hadn't yet taken the YMCA "Women on Weights" small group workshop that subsequently gave me the confidence to work out anywhere. (I supposed I could have done cardio on the machines, but have never been a fan of machine cardio.)
  • lg013
    lg013 Posts: 215 Member
    kshama2001 wrote: »
    Having a job in 2000 that required a lot of travel inspired me to created and memorize my own yoga flow so I didn't have to rely on teachers or DVDs.

    I've walked and done yoga in airports. At the hotel, I've done yoga in my room and walked outside. I hadn't yet taken the YMCA "Women on Weights" small group workshop that subsequently gave me the confidence to work out anywhere. (I supposed I could have done cardio on the machines, but have never been a fan of machine cardio.)


    Oh, the YMCA is National now too at no additional cost. I’ve enjoyed working out at their locations all over the country (Holy crap Charlotte, NC, your YMCA facilities are the nicest!). So joining a YMCA or national chain gym is also helpful (since you pay a lot more with gyms to use any facility, you might be pushed more to get your $ worth). Some health insurance policies also offer gym memebership that covers multiple chains and facilities nationwide that can make finding a good gym easy for you.

    I’ve also brought a yoga mat with me and went for it in the airport. There are several companies that make travel friendly mats that are foldable.
  • apullum
    apullum Posts: 4,838 Member
    lg013 wrote: »
    Hotels with gyms are a godsend.

    I always google airport workouts online and get a good hour of one in before my flight. Lots of creative ways people are finding to use what’s in an airport to work out.

    I just have to share about the fancy workout facilities at the fancy hotel where I stayed last weekend. They had TWO fitness rooms. One had traditional cardio equipment (treadmills, bikes, etc.) and the other had a small climbing wall, gymnastic rings, other equipment one might use for something like Crossfit.

    We walked a lot and so I only used the fitness rooms for foam rolling, but it was still pretty darn impressive.
  • lg013
    lg013 Posts: 215 Member
    apullum wrote: »
    lg013 wrote: »
    Hotels with gyms are a godsend.

    I always google airport workouts online and get a good hour of one in before my flight. Lots of creative ways people are finding to use what’s in an airport to work out.

    I just have to share about the fancy workout facilities at the fancy hotel where I stayed last weekend. They had TWO fitness rooms. One had traditional cardio equipment (treadmills, bikes, etc.) and the other had a small climbing wall, gymnastic rings, other equipment one might use for something like Crossfit.

    We walked a lot and so I only used the fitness rooms for foam rolling, but it was still pretty darn impressive.

    Added bonus is they are usually empty. I have never caught another person working out at the hotel gym before...so it’s a nice time to try new things your nervous doing at your normal gym lol
  • whoami67
    whoami67 Posts: 297 Member
    I fly for work, too. Currently, I do my usual exercise at home the day I leave. Sometimes that means getting up very, very early. I usually do a 45min -1hr exercise DVD and walk 3-4 miles each day so I don't need a gym. I stream the exercises on my phone or tablet and do it in my hotel. I also walk near my hotel or at the hotel gym on a treadmill. If I come home on a redeye and am up all night or for more than 24 hours at a time, I take a rest day or at the most, I go for a walk.

    When I used to do other workouts, I used the hotel gym or many hotels have arrangements with local gyms you can use. Yes, I'm often tired and don't want to work out, but I do it anyway. And as others have said, you can usually walk miles in an airport.
  • HoneyBadger302
    HoneyBadger302 Posts: 2,073 Member
    Hotel gym, walk to and from my conferences/meetings, grab a rental bicycle and bike, etc. Generally I have no issue getting plenty of walking in, and a teensy bit of discipline lands me in the fitness center for a bit. Hardest part is time differences, but sometimes you just have to force yourself to get up/go to bed.
  • Pamela_Sue
    Pamela_Sue Posts: 563 Member
    If you do strength training, I have heard that resistance bands are cheap, take up little suitcase space, and are easy to use in your hotel room.
  • Motorsheen
    Motorsheen Posts: 20,508 Member
    It's not the travel so much as the time-change that kicks my tail....

    7AM on the East Coast is only 4AM on the Left Coast.

    The time change, it hurts me; it hurts me bad.
  • apullum
    apullum Posts: 4,838 Member
    lg013 wrote: »
    apullum wrote: »
    lg013 wrote: »
    Hotels with gyms are a godsend.

    I always google airport workouts online and get a good hour of one in before my flight. Lots of creative ways people are finding to use what’s in an airport to work out.

    I just have to share about the fancy workout facilities at the fancy hotel where I stayed last weekend. They had TWO fitness rooms. One had traditional cardio equipment (treadmills, bikes, etc.) and the other had a small climbing wall, gymnastic rings, other equipment one might use for something like Crossfit.

    We walked a lot and so I only used the fitness rooms for foam rolling, but it was still pretty darn impressive.

    Added bonus is they are usually empty. I have never caught another person working out at the hotel gym before...so it’s a nice time to try new things your nervous doing at your normal gym lol

    I was in the fitness rooms about a half dozen times during my trip. I only saw one other person and he was finishing up when I came in.
  • Machka9
    Machka9 Posts: 25,619 Member
    lg013 wrote: »
    apullum wrote: »
    lg013 wrote: »
    Hotels with gyms are a godsend.

    I always google airport workouts online and get a good hour of one in before my flight. Lots of creative ways people are finding to use what’s in an airport to work out.

    I just have to share about the fancy workout facilities at the fancy hotel where I stayed last weekend. They had TWO fitness rooms. One had traditional cardio equipment (treadmills, bikes, etc.) and the other had a small climbing wall, gymnastic rings, other equipment one might use for something like Crossfit.

    We walked a lot and so I only used the fitness rooms for foam rolling, but it was still pretty darn impressive.

    Added bonus is they are usually empty. I have never caught another person working out at the hotel gym before...so it’s a nice time to try new things your nervous doing at your normal gym lol

    That's true. We went to a resort just after Christmas for a few days, and although there were a few people using the swimming pool, no one was using the gym. I had a great time!
  • lorrpb
    lorrpb Posts: 11,463 Member
    Motorsheen wrote: »
    It's not the travel so much as the time-change that kicks my tail....

    7AM on the East Coast is only 4AM on the Left Coast.

    The time change, it hurts me; it hurts me bad.

    Not sure which coast you’re from and which coast you’re traveling to? If your from the east and traveling west, you can get up at 7am ET and have plenty of time to work out before your local day begins.
    If you’re fro the west and traveling east, do your workout in the evening after the local work is done and you’re still wide awake.
    3 hrs change is rough either way.
  • futureicon
    futureicon Posts: 348 Member
    I travel a lot for work as well. I try to make it a point to hit the hotel fitness room right after I check in, to get the week off on the right foot. I also use an app called fitbod that builds workouts around your goals and even has a bodyweight only option in case you're away from home and don't have gym equipment at your disposal.
  • Motorsheen
    Motorsheen Posts: 20,508 Member
    lorrpb wrote: »
    Motorsheen wrote: »
    It's not the travel so much as the time-change that kicks my tail....

    7AM on the East Coast is only 4AM on the Left Coast.

    The time change, it hurts me; it hurts me bad.

    Not sure which coast you’re from and which coast you’re traveling to? If your from the east and traveling west, you can get up at 7am ET and have plenty of time to work out before your local day begins.
    If you’re fro the west and traveling east, do your workout in the evening after the local work is done and you’re still wide awake.
    3 hrs change is rough either way.

    it's a left coast ----> east coast thing for me.

    ..... and yes, I'll still try to train in the evening however, I'm usually awake and up a lot the night before so it results in just a few hours of sleep; that's the tough part.



  • lg013
    lg013 Posts: 215 Member
    Motorsheen wrote: »
    lorrpb wrote: »
    Motorsheen wrote: »
    It's not the travel so much as the time-change that kicks my tail....

    7AM on the East Coast is only 4AM on the Left Coast.

    The time change, it hurts me; it hurts me bad.

    Not sure which coast you’re from and which coast you’re traveling to? If your from the east and traveling west, you can get up at 7am ET and have plenty of time to work out before your local day begins.
    If you’re fro the west and traveling east, do your workout in the evening after the local work is done and you’re still wide awake.
    3 hrs change is rough either way.

    it's a left coast ----> east coast thing for me.

    ..... and yes, I'll still try to train in the evening however, I'm usually awake and up a lot the night before so it results in just a few hours of sleep; that's the tough part.



    Is it possible to build shorter but more frequent workouts across your day? Like do 10 min of something every few hours?

  • lorrpb
    lorrpb Posts: 11,463 Member
    Motorsheen wrote: »
    lorrpb wrote: »
    Motorsheen wrote: »
    It's not the travel so much as the time-change that kicks my tail....

    7AM on the East Coast is only 4AM on the Left Coast.

    The time change, it hurts me; it hurts me bad.

    Not sure which coast you’re from and which coast you’re traveling to? If your from the east and traveling west, you can get up at 7am ET and have plenty of time to work out before your local day begins.
    If you’re fro the west and traveling east, do your workout in the evening after the local work is done and you’re still wide awake.
    3 hrs change is rough either way.

    it's a left coast ----> east coast thing for me.

    ..... and yes, I'll still try to train in the evening however, I'm usually awake and up a lot the night before so it results in just a few hours of sleep; that's the tough part.

    Going west to east sucks! I hate it. Plus it’s such a long flight.