Success is a tale of obstacles overcome, and for every obstacle overcome, an excuse not used.–Robert Brault

I feel like I have been on another planet this past week. I had a four night, five day business trip in Pittsburgh that was spent mostly in the confines of the hotel. This was my first trip in quite some time that required more than one overnight. Typically I can plan around my workouts and take that as my off day, but I wasn’t going to take 5 days off. I know a lot of people travel frequently and I wanted to find a good balance to share my experiences and possible tips.

One of the biggest obstacles is time. I can understand this since the “bookend” days of trips mostly involve travel. Fortunately for me, there weren’t huge delays that affected my connecting flights. I chose to workout from home on those “bookend” days. So what about those days with long meetings? Here’s the thing. I have no other responsibilities besides work and myself while away. I don’t have to make supper, take kids to practice, go to ball games, get groceries, etc. I end up with the same amount of personal time, if not more, than I did while at home. It’s just as difficult fitting that hour in the day for me and my health when I am home. Unless there are unusual circumstances, it’s not an excuse to miss a workout. Flights delayed? Take a nice brisk walk in the airport!

The other challenge is equipment. I am doing P90X and Insanity, which means I needed weights during this trip. I have been using resistance bands for awhile and now prefer them to weights.  They take up minimal space and don’t bog down the suitcase.  I brought two with me and that was sufficient. The best thing about bands is the ability to change the resistance just by increasing or decreasing the loop or stance. The bigger the loop or stance, the more resistance. If your workouts require pullups, you can use the door hinge and pull the bands on either side of the door. For Insanity, all I needed was some room. Even if there isn’t a lot of space, it’s very doable. Ok, so now that we have eliminated this problem, we have one more huge hurdle to overcome when traveling.

I spent three days in a conference setting, which means they provided most of my meals. Eating right is by far the most challenging when traveling. It doesn’t matter if it’s work or pleasure, there just isn’t a lot of easy and convenient healthy choices besides grabbing a piece of fruit. This is especially true in an airport.  The meals provided required me to focus on taking only what was healthy and limiting my portions. Buffet style meals at least give you control over what ends up on your plate. Here is where I have to plug one of my favorite meals of the day. I brought some greenberry and chocolate  Shakeology packets with me.  When I was in a hurry or there just wasn’t anything healthy to eat around, I mixed a packet with something like OJ or water. I at least knew it would be the healthiest meal I ate all day!