5 Steps to Get Back into Your Routine Post Travel
Summer is a popular time to travel. You spend a week at the beach and then before you know it, it’s been three weeks since your last workout and you are continuing to splurge on alcohol, sweet treats, and other food choices that are not supporting your goal. It can be challenging to get back in the grove after a week away. However, if you create a plan and set yourself up for success you can get right back in the swing of things.
- Schedule your first workout back before you leave for your trip. It can be easy to get lost in all the things that need to get done after a trip. You may want to spend your time catching up on work and doing laundry and keep pushing off your next workout. However, your workout is only an hour (or hour and a half with travel time) and both work and laundry will both be there when you get back. Start with a short walk if needed. Just get moving again!
- Add in some extra tissue and mobility work. When we travel, we can be sitting for hours on end in the car, airplane, or airport. Adding in some extra soft tissue and mobility work can help prevent an unnecessary injury. Grab a foam roller and roll out a little longer than normal. Give your quads some extra love. Don’t be afraid to use a softball or tennis ball to get in a little deeper. Sitting on a tennis ball and lying on a tennis ball with it positioned underneath your hip flexor are both great. When you find the spots that are more tender, pause and relax into it. If you can’t relax, try to take a little pressure off. You want to be able to relax into it and feel that muscle release. Once you are all rolled out spend some extra time warming up. ½ kneeling hip flexor stretch, hip swivels, spiderman, side lying windmill, are some great movements to include.
- Take your first workout back easy Your nutrition has probably been a little different, sleep may have been less, and you have been sitting a lot for travel. Ease back into your workouts. After you’ve warmed-up, do your first set of exercises at a lower weight. Pay attention to how your body feels through the movement. Is your body moving great and you want to increase weight for the next set, does this lighter weight feel good, or down you need to go lighter or ditch the weight today? Listen to your body. This can save you from an unnecessary injury.
- Stay hydrated or rehydrate. It can be convenient to stop drinking water when we travel. The extra time it takes to stop and use the restroom can seem wasteful. However, it’s important to keep your body hydrated. Your body will thank you for it. It is also one thing that we can more easily keep doing through vacation. You may want to enjoy foods you don’t normally have, but you can still drink water. If you didn’t drink much water while on vacation, start right when you get home. It doesn’t involve prep work, you don’t have to go out and buy it, and its a simple step to get back in your groove.
- Make a grocery list and know when you are going to go shopping before you leave. You can also use Instacart or any other shopping service. The sooner your fridge is stocked with foods that support your goals and make you feel good, the better. If you know the week you get back is going to be a little more hectic, opt for easier things. For example, instead of getting a whole watermelon, buy watermelon that is already cut up. Or switch your fruit to grapes, which don’t need cutting. You can also choose frozen veggies that just need a quick heat instead on ones that take more prep.
What helps you get back to your routine after a week away?