We all travel for vacation or work at some point, and it is always a brilliant opportunity to experience something new.
For the most part people plan their workout or gym session when they are at home. When you are away however, it is quite often easy to fall out of your healthy workout routine.
So, if you have an upcoming vacation or work trip, this blog will help to give you some ideas related to general fitness and boxing workouts.
These should hopefully prepare and help you keep you active and fit when traveling.
Do your research
So before you head off on your travels, everyone usually does their research in terms of where to stay, eat, visit etc. In this case you want to do your research for how you can keep active whilst you are travelling. Here are some things to consider:
Check out local gyms
So wherever you are travelling to, there’s bound to be some sort of gym, especially if you are staying in a city. If you are more interested in going to boxing or mma gym, a quick google search of “Boxing gyms in [city]” should sort you out.
If you are unsure how they run, look for a contact number on the Google listing. You might even message their social media page. Find out what is the best way to turn up to see what their process is. All gyms can be different.
Hotel Gym facility
If you are staying in a hotel, more often than not they will have some sort of gym facility for you to use.
Find out what equipment they have, as sometimes they may have a heavy bag or other boxing related equipment for you to use too.
Rent a Bike
Once again if you are visiting a popular city or tourist destination, most will have access to tourist or city bikes.
This is also a brilliant way to travel around the city whilst being active at the same time.
There is also a real sense of adventure when you head out on your bike. Sometimes involving going up a steep hill if you take a wrong turn! But at least you will give yourself a good workout!
Plan your workouts in advance
Now that you have done your research it’s time to plan in advance. This is so you have no excuses by the time you are away at your destination.
Plan the time
Now that you have looked into what is available to you, plan the time of day you will actually be doing your workouts.
If you are with family or friends, maybe the best time to go is first thing in the morning. Make sure to got for a morning run or head to the gym first thing. Or if you have a free day, plan to go early in the afternoon instead.
Travel Friendly workouts
Now if you are travelling light, staying in a slightly isolated location or you just want to save money on other things than gym. Home body weight workouts are a fantastic option go to while in your hotel room or airbnb apartment instead.
There are so many you can find on YouTube easily today. If you are wanting a more structured plan related to boxing, I recommend checking out Phil Daru’s Body Weight workout program or some online courses here.
You can also do things like shadow boxing workouts or jump rope exercises. No matter what you do, there will definitely be an option of some sort.
Use the environment
Now the other useful element of travelling is the different environment you will encounter, whether that be for a vacation or work.
Here are some ideas you can do in different environments to stay fit and active.
The City
If you are in a city, there will no doubt be some sort of physical activities you can do, such as going on a walking or bike tour, or even just exploring the sites yourself.
Spending the whole day on your feet discovering new things will definitely be a workout in itself! You could even do a shadow boxing workout in the local park!
Another option could be finding some steep stairs like Rocky above to do some sprints up them or even tricep dips.
The Beach
Who doesn’t like the beach? This can be a brilliant place to do workouts such as shadow boxing or sprint drills just like you see in Rocky 3!
In all seriousness, the beach is a great place to workout. In particular, running or doing sprints on sand requires more energy and different muscles such as your calf muscles.
Sea or Lake
If you are at the beach or lake shore, the next most obvious activity for you is to go swimming! This is a brilliant way to stay active whilst travelling and you definitely get a brilliant full body workout from it.
If you are by the beach or lake, there also might be some sort of water sport you can do. Such as kayaking or rowing that can really really help give you a good upper body workout.
Hike
If you are away from the city and near some natural high landscapes in the mountains, a hike is your next best bet!
You will be on the incline for the majority of the walk and can be tough on the legs. But it’s always a brilliant option to get some fresh air in the great outdoors.
Skiing / Snowboarding
If near the mountains in a much colder climate, your best possible option might be to go skiing or snowboarding.
This is an incredibly fun activity to do if you are on a winter vacation trip and will certainly keep you active and on the move.
Portable Workout Equipment Ideas
Now the other option available to you is to pack your own portable equipment with you. The good thing for you is I hI have provided a list of boxing related items that won’t take up too much room in your luggage.
All of these you can give you a fantastic workout in their own right.
Jump Rope
This is one of the easiest and lightest items you can bring with you whilst travelling. This is a brilliant exercise for maintaining and building up your stamina and cardio instead of running.
Check out my review on Crossrope, who give slightly different jump rope experience.
Shadow Boxing Resistance Bands
Another item you could consider are shadow boxing resistance bands. Instead of doing your regular shadow boxing routine, add some resistance to get an extra sweat whilst using them. Plus these will be easy to pack and take with you.
To find out more check out my article on resistance bands for boxing here or my review on BoxBandz here.
Normal Resistance bands
The other option that is easy to pack would be standard resistance bands for more strength and conditioning workouts. These are brilliant travel fitness tools as you can do so many different types of exercises with these including arms, shoulders, back, chest, legs and even core.
I highly recommend you check out my review on Innstar here, who I believe have created the best quality workout bands I’ve come across.
Quiet Punch
If you are wanting to do boxing workouts from within your hotel room or apartment, Quiet Punch bag might be your best option.
This is a doorway punch bag that is easily packable, but you will need a little more space to take this with your luggage. Despite that, it is a fantastic portable option if you are wanting a workout from within your room, before you go out to explore.
Check out my review on Quiet Punch here or visit their website.
Egg weights
Another option could shadow boxing egg weights. These can be used to help give more intense shadowboxing workouts or even to use when out for a run around in your new environment.
Now if you are traveling light you might need to be mindful of your weight when flying with these as they will definitely be 1-2kg more extra in your luggage.
Check them out on eggweights.com or on Amazon here.
Reflex Ball
Finally, your last option could bring a punching reflex ball. This is a brilliant tool to help keep your hand eye coordination and reactions sharp whilst away on your travels.
The other great thing about reflex balls is that they are extremely lightweight and easy to pack with you.
Check out my top reflex ball options here.
Final Thoughts
As you can see from the above there’s really no excuses for not being able to get a good workout when travelling.
Make sure you do the research before you travel and also set specific times for when you will be active or workout.
Even if you don’t end up at a local gym, you can either keep active in your surrounding environments or even bring portable workout equipment whilst travelling.
Hopefully this will have given you some inspiration and useful ideas for your next trip.
If you are looking for a new travel bag, make sure to check out my review on the Ruk Backpack (see below). This might just be the perfect companion for your next travel adventure.
You can also check out my top 14 boxing gym bags to consider here too.
Thanks for reading!
