Planes, trains, and hotel rooms are a common component of our holiday schedules. It’s a special time of year and people go to great lengths to spend it with the people they love, so many of us will be joining the maddening crowd at the airport once again. However, don’t let hectic travel plans and cramped hotel rooms be an excuse to ditch your exercise and workout plan and feel lousy going into the New Year. To help you, I’m giving you my travel workout plan that can be done in a hotel room with very little space.
Honestly, I’m perplexed when patients tell me they can’t exercise because they travel so much. Daniel and I travel more than most people we know. We don’t have time NOT to exercise and eat healthy. It’s a MUST! If we don’t stay healthy and strong we won’t be able to maintain our hectic schedule and lifestyle. For me it’s an investment, like putting fuel in a car. Yeah, it takes a few minutes to stop at the gas station and refill, but if you don’t do it the car will run out of fuel and stop completely in a short time. The good news for when you do run out of fuel is that you’ll have plenty of time to deal with it when you’re broken down… Get it?
One more thing… Lose the excuse that since you only have 15 minutes, you might as well skip your work out. Again, I’m amazed at what people come up with to get out of doing something that empowers them. Do you really think it’s a better idea to use that fifteen minutes to go get a Mochachino with whipped cream and a blueberry muffin? Of course not! Do fifteen minutes of intense exercise with “bursting” (anaerobic) intervals. You’ll feel amazing for the rest of the day!
In spite of my efforts to stay in hotels with a gym, it’s just not always possible. So I’ve designed this simple workout to be done right in my hotel room. It requires very little space. Also, it can be tailored to fit your time constraints. Now what’s your excuse? Watch the attached video for a demonstration.
Choose between 4 to 6 of the following exercises to do in a circuit. Do three to five circuits depending on time. If you are a beginner, start with only 10 repetitions. If you’re advanced, you can always increase the repetitions or add some resistance as shown in the video. Have fun!
- Stretch
- Jumping jacks 10-25
- Burpees 10-25
- Mountain climbers 10-25
- Push-ups 10-25 (elevated from chair if you’re a beginner)
- Bicep curls 10-25 (use water bottles or other weight for resistance)
- Overhead triceps or chair dips 10-25 (use water bottles or other weight for resistance)
- Abs 10-25
- Squats 10-25
- Lunges 10-25 (single leg for beginners, alternating for advanced)
- Leg raises over suitcase
- Leg raises off bench or chair 10-25
- Bicycles for abs 10-25 (elbow to knee with crunch)
Let me know in if this has been helpful, and if it is please forward it to a friend who could benefit. We get better together or we get sick together.