Welcome back to my five-part series dedicated to helping you navigate the bustling summer holidays. As we dive into part four, we’ll focus on perhaps the most challenging piece of the puzzle: staying committed to your training and nutrition while you’re on a well-deserved holiday. The allure of exotic dishes, relaxation, and a break from routine can seem like a siren call for those hard-earned habits. But with a little foresight, you can savour your holiday without compromising your goals.
1. Research Before You Go
Before setting off, research your destination; can you find a hotel with a small gym complex or even a spa for some boosted recovery? Is there a pool or a beach nearby suitable for swim training? Are there some amazing local nature spots or beautiful local sights that you can incorporate into an active day of walking, hiking, bike hire or similar?
2. Pack Smart
- Portable Equipment: Resistance bands, a skipping rope, or even a TRX system can be packed easily and offer versatile workouts when you’re away. These make for quick workouts you can fit in before the rest of the family wake up or in between the pool and dinner reservations, where you can still embrace the benefits of movement without a big time investment or specialist kit.
- Nutrition Staples: Consider packing a few essentials like energy bars or protein powders if you’re going to be working out before the hotel breakfast buffet opens.
3. Set Realistic Expectations
YOU’RE ON HOLIDAY. It’s okay if your training intensity isn’t as rigorous as at home. The goal is maintenance and consistency, not necessarily progress and a holiday can be a fantastic opportunity to really boost rest and recovery as well as enjoying some well-overdue family time. Before you book and travel, consider what the purpose of your holiday is and where it fits in your timetable. Sometimes, taking a week out of training can be a really valuable thing to do!
4. Create a Flexible Routine
Plan a daily exercise window. It could be a morning swim, a midday hike, or an evening jog. Keep it flexible based on your holiday activities and remember that your family might thank you for including them in the morning walk too!
5. Enjoy Local Delicacies GUILT FREE.
One of the best things about being away is sampling the local delicacies. Whether it’s deliciously rich pastries, creamy sauces or aromatic spiced dishes, enjoy yourself! Enjoy new things and take inspiration from the flavours you taste on holiday to try some new things in the kitchen at home! Whatever you do, don’t berate yourself for choosing high fat and sugar foods while you’re away, but keep paying attention to your hunger and fullness cues. Savour every mouthful, embrace the fact you’re not on a timetable and take time with your meals, your morning coffee and enjoy the atmosphere around you.
Going away can often be accompanied by feelings of guilt and anxiety about whether you should, or will be able to, maintain your current nutrition and training regime. But it’s an opportunity to practice flexibility, relax and embrace that the be all and end all of life is not a rigid food and exercise plan. This is about experiences. You work hard to earn the opportunity to experience something new with your loved ones and the best way to be present in that moment, is to think ahead and choose to embrace something a little different.