I am worried about missing my workouts on vaca. Advice?

sarah_willis110
sarah_willis110 Posts: 40 Member
in Fitness and Exercise
I was planning on working out 5 days in a row to get it in before I leave, but I don't think I will as I'm on day 2 and tired af lol.

I had a deload week like 3 weeks ago so I'm worried about strength loss missing a couple workouts this week. I plan on a stretching and doing core workouts in my hotel room lol.

Advice?
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Replies

  • Retroguy2000
    Retroguy2000 Posts: 1,848 Member
    edited May 2023
    It takes at least a couple of weeks before you start losing strength, and any strength or muscle you do lose can be regained quickly anyway.

    Push the intensity hard now (not the same as 5 workout days in a row), and enjoy the time off.

    You might consider extra walking or cardio if needed while on vacation, especially if your calories are going to be way up due to more restaurant eating etc.
  • JaysFan82
    JaysFan82 Posts: 853 Member
    I'm going on a guys weekend with my friends next month to Toronto to see the Jays play a three game series. I'm gonna more than likely eat like crap. We do a ton of walking and I plan on going for a jog 2 out of the 4 mornings that we are gone. I'm looking forward to the change of scenery. Last year I gained only 1 pound. I burned it off the following week. Have fun and enjoy yourself.
  • SafariGalNYC
    SafariGalNYC Posts: 1,495 Member
    edited May 2023
    If I’m at a vacation rental, etc… either I do extra walking, hiking.. you can plank by the side of your bed, stretch, leg lifts, crunches, push ups .. all sorts of things that just need a few feet of space by your bed. I travel frequently, so I incorporate as much as I can.

    Plank plank plank! 😉
  • cwolfman13
    cwolfman13 Posts: 41,865 Member
    You don't lose strength or fitness gains that quickly. I've been knocked out for way longer with injury with minimal degradation of my overall fitness...not to mention, muscle memory is a thing and you bounce back very quickly, even from a relatively long hiatus. This isn't something to do a bunch of hand wringing over...enjoy your vacation.

    In over 10 years of this good livin' stuff I have never once done a "workout" while on vacation...but my vacations do tend to be overall pretty active. Lots of walking for site seeing, etc and many of our vacations are to destinations known for their outdoor recreation activities like hiking, biking, kayaking, etc...but I've never done a "workout" on vacation, ever...
  • AnnPT77
    AnnPT77 Posts: 34,251 Member
    Consistency is important, sure. But with both weight management and fitness, it can be tempting to think of it as a sort of magic formula that we if don't do it exactly exact, the spell won't work. It's not like that.

    In the case of weight loss, you've probably seen people here say "you didn't gain it overnight, so you're not going to lose it overnight" (or regain it overnight either, for that matter). Strength and other fitness dimensions are similar: You gain fitness gradually through patient persistence, and you lose it gradually, too. It's the generality - the overall consistency - that really matters, not a day or few here or there that's different.

    In the case of fitness, unlike bodyweight, others above are right: There's a tendency for the extra recovery time to maybe be beneficial, and for the body to have what folks call "muscle memory" that brings back lost capabilities faster than they were lost, assuming we're not talking about some major multi-month/multi-year hiatus (even then, it may come back quicker, sometimes/somewhat).

    Go on your vacation. Do some workouts if that's how you want to spend some of your vacation time, such as if it makes you feel better physically or emotionally or something. But if you want to skip them and take a break, take a break. I'll be OK.

    If you take the break, depending on the nature of your workouts, you might want to back off the intensity a little in your first session or two, as an on-ramp back into your routine. Notice how you feel in that first workout when back, and adjust duration or intensity if needed accordingly.
  • tomcustombuilder
    tomcustombuilder Posts: 2,228 Member
    If I’ve taken a short break my first day back in the gym is a full body session not too heavy. It re acquaints the body with training and then back on the normal program. That first session wakes the CNS back up then it’s business as usual after that.
  • sarah_willis110
    sarah_willis110 Posts: 40 Member
    Thanks all!! I'll just try to hike and do some body stretches/workouts.
  • kshama2001
    kshama2001 Posts: 28,052 Member
    sarah_willis110 wrote: »
    I was planning on working out 5 days in a row to get it in before I leave, but I don't think I will as I'm on day 2 and tired af lol.

    I had a deload week like 3 weeks ago so I'm worried about strength loss missing a couple workouts this week. I plan on a stretching and doing core workouts in my hotel room lol.

    Advice?

    While I've definitely walked more while on vacation, I've never lifted weights. However, when I used to travel a lot for work, if my hotel had a gym I would hit it. If your hotel has a gym and you feel like going, enjoy, and if not, skip it. Alternatively, and only if you want to, you could consider a few bodyweight exercises.

    To reiterate, only if you WANT to, not because you NEED to.

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