With holidays apparently back on the agenda for many of us (fingers firmly crossed after I got heavily burned in March 2020 – and not by the sun!), something that a lot of people worry about is losing progress if they take time off whilst they go away. In my expert opinion, there are a few ways to deal with that, read on to find out more.
Consider your time off a deload
Deloading is a part of your training cycle when you dial back the intensity to give your body a break from heavy loads, but still keep yourself moving. In a gym, it’s typically a case of drastically reducing the weights you’re lifting. It can feel almost lazy and boring! Whilst on holiday, it occurs naturally: if you use a hotel gym, they generally don’t have particularly heavy weights (it’s rare to see a barbell), as the gyms aren’t supervised unless the venue has a big health club. If you don’t use a gym whilst away, you may still be on a pretty active trip – swimming (either in open water or a pool); walking more than usual (city breaks in particular put a lot of miles in the legs); hiking or cycling to explore; maybe even an hour or a day on horseback or learning to surf or SUP. It’s all activity, so unless you really are doing a “fly and flop”, you’ll be getting more movement in than you might have realised.
Find a way to train
On a certain kind of trip, it may well benefit your mind and body to go through the rigmarole of finding somewhere good to train. If I’m travelling for work, I do like to use a gym whilst away, as it gives me the self-care time that I crave – there’s nothing like a business trip to make you feel “always on” and the gym is good headspace for a lot of us. If you’re travelling for pleasure, I’d encourage you to carefully interrogate your beliefs. Are you truly trying to train because you love it? Are you going to go and relish that destination gym you’ve been ogling on Instagram (hello, Tulum jungle gym), or will you be exercising in a cupboard? Can you make the most of your surroundings?
Because there’s actually a lot you can do when on location to actually enjoy your workout AND the environment you’re in. Bodyweight workout on a crystal clear beach? Yes please. Poolside yoga? Sure.
Take the fucking time off
You may have realised that this was coming. And believe me when I say that I was worried: early in my fitness journey, I wasn’t particularly informed, and I did genuinely worry that I’d lose progress or – of greater concern to me – the habit of training. My PT reassured me: “you won’t. Go and enjoy your holiday”. He was right (thanks, Olly!). You have saved hard for this trip. You’ve dreamed about it. You’ve planned the places you want to go, the things you want to see and do… or exactly how many times you want to swim up to the pool bar (see, there we go with the exercise again!). You are entitled to go and enjoy it. Unlike your dog, your gym kit won’t mind being left at home.
That said… your workout skills can help in other ways. You’ll know how to carry your bags safely. You’ll be a demon with the luggage trolley thanks to all of those sled pushes. You’ll know how to work the kinks (gently, carefully, with kindness) out of your muscles and joints having been cramped on a flight and slept in an unfamiliar bed (if you’ve got space in your bag for a tennis ball, or can find one at the hotel, it may help you here. You could also book a massage at the nearest spa).
Enjoy. Your. Trip. The gym will wait for you.