Eric and I LOVE traveling, but what I don't love is noticing that I gained a ton of weight when we get back. This past year I have managed to stay out of that weight gaining rut after a handful of vacations and here are some things I did! Hopefully they can help you too!
Are you vacationing in a city? Walk around the city instead of taking a cab or train. Some of my most fun times on vacation have been just wondering around with no other objective than to meet amazing people and find cool things that aren't in the tourist books. Don't be afraid to get lost and try some crazy things!
Vacation on a beach? WALK IT. It's a great exercise and even better way to connect with a loved one or friend. Also, it's a good way to get a tan and to do some exploring.
Safety tip: always have a "way out" i.e. When we were in Puerto Vallarta the taxis were always really cheap to take us back home, even if we didn't know how to get there! When in NYC or Chicago, the rail systems were really easy to figure out and if worse comes to worse we could pay an arm and a leg for a taxi.
2. Try to go on a hike or 2 ... or 20!
This is a little harder if you go to a huge city, but Eric and I were able to find some amazing hikes in Puerto Vallarta. Find somebody that looks active or has dogs and ask them if they know of any good hikes! If you smile and be very thankful, people generally like helping other people and feeling smart. You can also ask the visitors center.
Safety tip: If you don't have a guide or a local with you make sure you have a map of the hike. Woods are scary places to be lost because most of the time phones don't work to call for help (but that adds to the adventure ;))
If you are going to a more rural area, hikes are a breeze to find! Do a little internet searching before leaving or ask around! It's a great way to see the landscape of the place you are visiting. It is never "just woods."
3. SWIM in the ocean or pool
Going somewhere that has an ocean or a pool? Actually swim in it! Get your hair wet, do some hand stands, try to do some flips, or just simply do laps!
If you have an ocean you don't have to do much in it to burn some calories. Those beautiful waves are acting as resistance and helping you even if you are just staying in one spot.
Not to mention if you are in the pool you will still get a beautiful tan!
4. Rent bikes
On a recent mini-vacation to Indianapolis Eric and I did the Bike Share thing and rented bikes! I guess a lot of cities are adapting this new trend.
For those of you would have no idea what I'm talking about, let me explain. Basically there are these bike racks all around the city that have these bikes that lock into them. In Indy we put our credit card into the machine and basically bought a day pass for a bike. You get 30min on a bike whenever you want it, you just have to get it back to another rack before 30min is up and get a new one. It was $8 per bike! Cheap, fun, and burning calories for transportation. Can't beat that!
5. Take the stairs any chance you get
It's easy to just pop on the elevator to the 50th floor of a fancy building, but wouldn't it be awesome to be able to say that you conquered that building!? Challenge yourself! If you get too tired you can always switch to the elevator.
6. Eat good food
I know what you're thinking, "No way! I'm on vacation!" Well, I feel the same way so let me explain. Eat food that you love but chose your restaurants wisely.
Big rule of thumb: don't eat fast food.
Schedule your meals wisely and pick good restaurants that use good ingredients. You don't have to always eat salad but when you eat that cheeseburger make sure it is actually meat on that bun and not some processed piece of who knows what!
Try local restaurants. Why would you eat at Applebee's if you can eat at Applebee's in your hometown? Branch out! Try something new and it might be a
better health choice!
Don't always eat out either, if you are camping, cook over the fire! If you are staying some place with a kitchen, plan a night in.
Pack snacks and lunches! This is good for the budget and for your waistline. I always take a box of protein bars when we vacation because you never know when you are going to be without a meal or in a weird place and you need something substantial.
Ex. When we were in Mexico we ate a lot of Mexican food that has so many fresh ingredients! My favorite was buying the fresh coconuts off of the street. They gave you a straw and you drank the water (a personal favorite of mine) and then you gave it back to them and they chopped up the juicy coconut meat, seasoned it, and handed it back! My mouth is watering now. WHY DON'T WE SELL FRESH COCONUTS IN AMERICA!?!?
7. Try an active excursion
I just love Mexico. We were on this pretty secluded beach and this teenage boy was riding his body board. In town you could rent them for like 20-30 dollars, so we asked him if we could rent it from him and he said yes, and for $8! So we did that! What a great core workout but also super fun!
If you are at a resort and picking excursions, try to find ones where you are doing something. We went swimming with the sea turtles and cave diving on our honeymoon in Playa del Carmen, Mexico.
Chances are the more active you are, the more fun you are going to have without the guilt. Not to mention all those endorphins that you are releasing by being active! And how proud you will
be of yourself for being active.
8. Be creative
Keep an eye out for ways to be active. You never know what might come up! I found some Zumba classes to attend in Puerto Vallarta that were a BLAST and a very a good cultural experience!
9. Don't forget to still splurge, it's vacation for Pete's sake.
Staying in shape and having less of the post vacation recovery are good things but enjoying food and relaxing are also very important to your health. It's ok to splurge on some bad foods, but try to monitor it.
No comments:
Post a Comment