🫵 No, You're Not Crazy If You Do This on Vacation
I made it a point to exercise (not just walk) in Greece. Here's my case for prioritizing exercise during travel.
In Greece, I was told I was crazy for doing this.
But I was adamant about hitting my weekly running goal (15 miles per week), going for at least 3-4 swims a week, and doing two hikes while my wife and I were island hopping in Greece.
As I mentioned in my first newsletter last week, many Greeks I spoke to mentioned not prioritizing fitness in their lives, so when I told them I was exercising on vacation, they thought that was silly.
Newsletter Summary:
Should you exercise on vacation? Is it necessary? And is it that crazy?
Why travel isn’t necessarily optimized for exercise, and how you can fit it in
One quote about being on the move
No, You're Not Crazy If You Exercise on Vacation
Despite this coming from many of the locals in Greece, I was happy to get my runs in while on the road.
I don’t think it’s a bad idea for someone to want to work out on vacation.
If you can find time around your vacation itinerary to lift weights or do dedicated cardio, it’s not a bad thing and you’re not being obsessive or compulsive.
People who want to continue their workout routine on vacation are more likely to stay consistent upon returning if they can get at least one workout in during their travels.
There’s no magic number for how long it takes to build a fitness habit — some have speculated up to 6 months — but missing a week or two of exercise is certainly enough time to lose a habit if you don’t have the right system in place.
Is working out on vacation totally necessary?
It depends on the person.
Someone new to fitness — like the person above working to build a habit — would probably do well to find time for at least one hotel or resort gym session (maybe more, if they’re lounging at a resort and not walking much) to keep fitness as a regular part of their routine and not fall off the wagon.
On the flip side, someone who’s been working out for years and has exercise ingrained into their system can probably afford a bit less movement because their system of consistency is already heavily neurologically programmed.
This latter person will have little to no trouble picking back up where they left off after a long break.*
*For what it’s worth, I’ve actually had a pretty tough time reintegrating strength training back into my days after Greece. I’ve been running a lot and lifting less. I’m not perfect!
In short, budgeting time for movement during your vacation isn’t crazy, and shouldn’t be avoided completely if you’re concerned about maintaining a healthy habit.
We often think vacation means taking time off from everything in our normal routine.
That can be a healthy thing, but it can be unhealthy if all you’re doing on vacation is sipping margaritas on a beach and averaging 500 steps a day. There needs to be balance.
Your workout doesn’t have to be the usual 45-minute to hour-plus long workout it was at home, and 30 minutes/an abbreviated session can still move the needle forward while traveling. Returning home to somewhat atrophied muscles after a trip longer than one week is never fun, and these short, relatively easier sessions can do a lot to prevent that.
Are you usually lifting the 30-pound dumbbells? Use the 20’s on vacation. Are you usually resting for 30 seconds between sets? Rest for 60 to 90. No one is mandating that you have to train with the same intensity on your time off.
✈️ Why Travel Isn’t Optimized For Exercise
What also poses a challenge to a regular workout routine on vacation is that very few hotel and resort gyms will have the same amount of equipment you’d have at home.
If you’re someone who’s usually hitting the barbell multiple times a week and using machines, you’ll be hard pressed to find all the exact equipment on the road.
While you might get some marginal benefits from walking 10,000+ steps and maybe some swimming in the water, most other countries don’t have gyms that offer day passes to let you waltz in and crush a workout.
And that’s fine.
Fitness-Tourism isn’t a thing — at least not yet — so I can’t imagine countries in the Caribbean or Europe are more concerned about your exercise than they are about you trying their restaurants, wines, and beach clubs.
Most states you’ll travel to and countries abroad haven’t optimized for exercise, that is unless you’re planning a ski/snowboard trip or a hiking trip.
Planning a trip like that, though — or actively seeking out activities that require movement, like swimming, kayaking, or golfing — can be a great way to get some auxiliary exercise if you’re not feeling like doing your normal 3x10s or timed intervals in the gym.
Runners might also enjoy going for a run around the city they’re exploring.
Strava, a popular fitness app for tracking runs and cycles, has a pre-curated “Routes” feature that allows users to mark their running routes for other users to see.
I used this feature to find a route for a 7.3-mile run in Paros, Greece while I was away. Shoutout to that random user, by the way — their route was 16 miles — my wife would’ve killed me if I tried their whole route.
🔎 One Quote About Being On The Move (literally and figuratively)
"Life is like riding a bicycle, to keep your balance, you must keep moving"
— Albert Einstein
Like I said above, those who struggle to maintain habits might do well to keep moving on vacation to keep their “balance,” a la this Einstein quote.
Of course, the type of vacation matters a LOT when considering this goal.
If you ever need a custom workout plan for the road, my inbox is always open. Replying to this e-mail is a great way to get in touch with me about workouts of any kind.
See you all on Friday.