Hopping from hotel to hostel to couch wreaks havoc on those little luxuries called ‘daily routines’. That morning cuppa’ at your favorite cafe, that after shower relaxation, that staring out the window for the better part of an hour, once normal, now become anything but.

One daily routine that I need (as evinced by my ever present love handles) and is also the least likely to stay a ‘routine’ is going to the gym. If you’re like me, its moderately easy to maintain once you have the routine, but once you fall off the horse, it’s hard to get back on it. With that in mind, how does one maintain a fitness routine when on the road?

Here is what has worked for me: The first thing is to want to do it. To tap into that one teeny part inside that knows how the rest of the day will feel after a workout. If it’s awake, then we can proceed. If not, well, then see if you can dedicate just 4 minutes to a workout, and jump to point 6 (Tabata routines).

1. Carve out a fixed time in the day for a workout. For me, its the first thing I do when I wake-up. Any other time doesn’t stay reliable, as we’re out exploring the wonderland that is planet earth.

2. Decide on a length for the workout, then reduce it by a third, since if you’re like me, you’ll be over ambitious when setting goals and under-ambitious when following through. For me I decided I wanted to do an hour’s worth of working out a day. So I set a timer for 40 minutes.

3. Have 2-3 preset routines of exercises. A circuit if you will. It gives you a list to complete so you don’t get lazy and stop. The list should extend to your specific time (See 2). A routine that I use is:

• 16 walking lunges
• 16 Squats with Shoulder Press (12lb dumbbell or medium-strength resistance bands (see point 5))
• 12 lower back incline lifts
• 12 bridge poses
• run 0.5km
• Repeat cycle 3 times, 1 minute break between each cycle

4.  No Cardio. When traveling you will be doing a lot of walking. Hence during any particular fitness routine, skip the ‘cardio’ section (0.5 km ain’t’ cardio.:)

5. Resistance bands! Such as those you can get here, are a valuable to doing weight training. Make sure you get the door attachment as well. You can do multiple exercises like the lunges my good friend internet-girl here is doing. I figured it’s way nicer to look at her than me doing the same. 🙂

6. Tabata routines! If you do nothing else, do this. It takes 4 minutes and kicks ass. It is a form of HIIT routine that was found to be extremely efficient at improving cardiovascular health by japanese researchers (gotta love the japanese!). There are various forms of Tabata routines you can get online, such as this page, and this one. Check it out, and go crazy! Safe health and travels.