Best Travel Workouts to Stay in Shape While Traveling

Besides travel, health and fitness are 2 of our mutual passions. Alex is a certified yoga teacher and together we working out, hiking, and eating delicious, healthy food. Perhaps the most common question we get is, “How do you stay in shape while you’re traveling?” Honestly, it’s easy. It simply requires you to be dedicated. You can’t be dieting and training FOR that vacation. The nutrition and the training have to be instrumental parts of your life; a lifestyle. We don’t see travel as being any different than life at home: we try not to splurge on random shit we don’t need, we try to eat healthily, and we make an effort to work out almost daily. But what are the best travel workouts to stay in shape while traveling? Here are some of our favorites!

Go to a local gym or a hotel gym

Of the 40 or so countries we have visited, we have been able to find a local gym or use a hotel gym in almost all of them. We have had some exceptions, like our camping experience in Luxembourg and trips to other rural areas, but typically we can find a gym.

Sure, the equipment might be different, and if you’re an American you might struggle to convert kilograms into pounds, but you’ll fair just fine. FYI, 1 kilogram = 2.2 pounds. Whenever we have to resort to a shitty hotel gym that only has some cardio equipment, light dumbbells, and a medicine ball, we innovate. Create HIIT workouts where you lift everything as many times as you can, work in sprint intervals, and do ball crunches until you can’t lift yourself.

Take a local yoga class

Yoga is something everyone should do while traveling. It creates an incredible opportunity to meet locals, stretch, and destress after a long flight. If you’re stuck on a 14-hour flight, you should ABSOLUTELY take a yoga class as soon as you arrive. The breathwork involved in yoga will also aid in fighting jetlag.

Take a hike

We have had the opportunity to take the most amazing hikes in our lives while traveling. Hiking the Path of the Gods on the Amalfi Coast, hiking Machu Picchu, and hiking Mt. Batur at sunrise are 3 of our most notable highlights, but hiking Cinque Terre, the best hikes in southern California, and hiking around the mountains of Switzerland were all great workouts and breathtaking experiences.

Walk EVERYWHERE

On average, we walk about 10 miles per day while we are traveling because we usually love to explore and prefer not to take cabs. It is simply the best way to see a new destination, especially a city.

Online workouts

Alo Moves, 108, Sweat, Fresh Body Fit Mind, Keep It Cleaner, and other apps/online platforms are awesome for hotel room/Airbnb workouts. Most of these platforms have a free trial, but if you’re not keen to pay an online subscription, you can also use YouTube and search for the type of workouts you want.

Yes, guys, these apps are mostly targeted toward women, but the Alo Moves and 108 sites actually have awesome yoga classes. Check out Nate Green as well

Use your body

Bodyweight workouts are severely underrated. Don’t believe us? Go to a yoga class. You can create high-intensity bodyweight workouts, superset with sprint intervals, hold planks and wall sits until you fall, and stretch. Stretching is so crucial after long-haul flights…we really can’t stress this point enough. We even stretch and do yoga ON the plane sometimes. Yeah, we are those weirdos.

Try a few of these options:

• Pushups 1 – Do pushups to failure and then cut that number in half and do 10 sets (if you do 50 pushups and fail, do 10 sets of 25 pushups) – Alternate close and wider grip if you want to work triceps and different parts of the chest. You can also elevate your feet for decline pushups or elevate your upper body for incline pushups.
• Pushups 2 – Do 8 sets of 25 pushups. If you can’t do 25 pushups, break up the sets.
• Chest/Abs – Superset pushups and various ab workouts. Do 10 pushups and 10 crunches then 10 pushups and 10 leg lifts, then 10 pushups and 1-minute plank hold. Rotate whatever feels good.
• Legs – Do 50 bodyweight squats and then do a wall sit for 5 minutes (sit against a wall at a 90-degree angle) – Repeat 5 times
• Arms – Do 10 – 20 close grip pushups. Superset with 10 bodyweight tricep dips.

Push yourself and try to use your creativity. Maybe do all of the above if you’re a fucking beast. You can even go to a local park, look for a jungle gym, or find a strong tree and do pull-ups and other exercises. We have found a number of little “exercites” (outdoor workout areas – mostly bodyweight and poles)

Try new activities

Never surfed before but you’re in Bali. You damn well better surf. Never swam with sharks before but you’re in Bora Bora. You get your ass in the water. Oh, you’re in Thailand? Try out Muay Thai. Play golf, but not the fun way…it doesn’t count as a workout if you drink 18 beers and drive in a golf cart. It does, however, count as a workout if you walk the 4-5 miles that most golf courses cover, carry a bag of golf clubs, and swing a club all day.

Whatever it is (rock climbing, kite surfing, yoga, golf, etc.) get out and do some form of activity that is representative of the local culture. It will give you a chance to have new experiences and stay active while also meeting locals.

Have sex

Bodyweight, age, and other variables have a large influence on the number of calories burned during sex. The most varying factors, of course, are the intensity and duration of each session. However, research indicates that on average, men burn about 100 calories during sex while women burn 69 (lol). Sorry, only a kissing picture for this one.

It really isn’t difficult to stay healthy while traveling – you just have to commit!

What’s your favorite way to work out while traveling?