Fitness While Traveling- How to Make Fitness Work For Your Schedule

Today we have a guest blog from Mike Manning.  Check out his other work here: mikemanningmusings.blogspot.com

In 2009, forty-two percent of adults in the U.S. traveled for leisure purposes.  Forty-eight percent of adults reported traveling for business purposes during that same year.  With so many people traveling for professional and recreational purposes each year, it's understandable why fitness can take a backseat for many.  Here are several ways travelers are staying fit during travel.  

Americans are connected to their smartphones.  They are relying on their devices to not only stay connected to what's going on in the office, but they are also taking advantage of the many travel apps on the market to stay in top shape.  RunKeeper for iPhone and Android users is helping people track their miles and the number of calories burned over a long period of time.  P90X is helping iPhone users stay fit, allowing them to personally download several workout routines at a time.  Hatha Yoga apps are available to iPhone users who desire to be guided through an effective yoga workout routine.  Pilates enthusiasts turn to apps like Pilates Interactive to get access to workouts via their iPhone or Android device.


Many professionals are now scheduling trips to actual fitness retreats.  They are taking advantage of these travel opportunities to try new things.  Fitness retreats are a great way for people to really shake things up.  Often referred to as luxury fitness retreats, these people offer everything from strength training to hiking for travelers.  

The average person experiences stress and anxiety with a demanding travel schedule.  This can be particularly stressful to some and cause a disturbance in sleeping patterns.  A sleep-deprived person will find it hard to focus and concentrate throughout today due to a lack of sleep.  Taking HTP supplements is a great way to counter the effects of jet lag and correct problems sleeping.

Some people take certain types of equipment on the road to remain on top of their fitness regimens.  A person can research the facilities before scheduling their lodging to see if there are any nearby trails that are accessible.  Inquiring about any gyms on the premises or whether or not there are any yoga classes provided on site that can help a person plan accordingly. On a recent trip to San Francisco I used a travel site called Gogobot in order to book a hotel with a 24-hour gym. I used this site to see a list of the top hotels in San Francisco and from here I could discern which hotels had the best fitness amenities.

People from all walks of life have diverse needs when traveling.  Busy people often have to carve out time to get a workout in.  Luckily, solutions like apps, dedicated retreats, supplements and hotel amenities make staying fit for frequent travelers manageable.

Hurting Again

Most would say that a blog with this title is a bad thing but in reality, it is very good.  Hurting is one of those things that takes some getting used to.  I was reflecting on my training for the past year and realized a few things.  First, I had only done a handful of workouts since the last workouts before my conference track meet last May.  Those workouts were generally longer, threshold type ones and they didn't hurt that bad.  I have only run 2 races, one 5k and one 10k, neither fast, and they both hurt! 

I have done a few workouts in the last few weeks, a tempo run with the High Plains Harriers where I just had to mentally focus on Ragan's back and hold on.  Later that week, I ran my first track workout in nearly 6 months.  It was composed of 200s and 400s.  200s are mentally easy unless they are super fast and I assure you that these were not.  400s were slightly harder but not too bad.  Towards the middle of the workout I started wondering if my recoveries were even helping.  That is one of the main things that I have noticed at 7200' is that it takes longer to recover both during and after runs and workouts.  But, even if I didn't feel good at the start of an interval, I got through it and it wasn't really that bad.  It really is just getting used to running a faster pace than my daily runs which are not very fast at all.

A Different Direction

Up until the past year, my life had been fully devoted to running.  I was also a student but an average one at best.  I had other hobbies but everything took a backseat to running.  Don't get me wrong, I still love running but it's time to start living!  I have many different hobbies that I presently enjoy and would like an arena to talk about; mountain biking, bouldering, mountaineering and backpacking (just starting these ones in the spirit of Wyoming), disc golfing, brewing, eating well, traveling, and anything else that I would like to do.  I am also considering going back to school to pursue a few interests and it will be nice to be a true student and I look forward to soaking up the student experience that I deprived myself of.  I loved my 4 years at SDSU but I am looking forward to more adventures of a different sort as well as continuing to run.  As I take this different direction I am looking to take on a different name for my blog.  I would like it to be something simple yet creative and still encompassing my hobbies.  It will be difficult to find the right phrase or name because my hobbies are fairly diverese and ever expanding.  I am looking forward to the future and will take any suggestions!