The Business Traveler's Guide to Health and Wellness on the Road
In the fast-paced world of business travel, maintaining a healthy lifestyle can often take a back seat to meetings, conferences, and tight schedules. However, prioritizing your wellbeing on the road is crucial for sustaining energy, focus, and overall productivity. In this guide, we'll explore practical tips for business travellers to incorporate fitness routines and make healthier choices while away from home. Let’s get started!
Prepare and Plan Ahead For Fitness
The easiest and most convenient way to make sure you can stay on track with your healthy living routine is to choose accommodation that has fitness facilities onsite or venues that have partnered with local or nearby gyms and leisure centres. This way, you know where to go for that quick pre-breakfast sweat session, taking the hassle out of building a sustainable routine.
If you’re staying in rental accommodations or moving between locations, consider packing light exercise equipment. This could be a foldable yoga mat, resistance bands, skipping rope or compact workout tools that can easily fit in your luggage - and won’t take your weight limit over the threshold! Having these handy means you can bang out a quick workout in your room or at a local park, turning any location into a makeshift gym.
And finally, embrace the bodyweight workouts! Running, walking, or simple bodyweight movements like push-ups, squats and lunges can be done anywhere and at any time. Just remember to pack some comfy activewear and your favourite running shoes.
Stick To and Schedule Fitness ‘Meetings’
Travel can really throw off a workout routine! With time differences, jet lag, unfamiliar locations and the excitement of exploring a new destination, it’s easy to get distracted. Treat your workout like any other business appointment and block time in your itinerary for your activity of choice. Scheduling dedicated time for exercise increases the chance that you will stick to your plan, and helps break up a long day, especially if you’re travelling for business.
The best way to fit in some exercise is to skip the Uber queue and set off on foot. You can build extra buffers into your meeting schedule to allow for longer travel times and hit two birds with one stone. First, you are getting your body moving and enjoying some fresh air, but you also get to see a different side of your destination, one you’re unlikely to experience on public transport or in a car.
Lastly, utilize your travel day wisely. Expecting a long airport layover? Use that time to stretch, move, and walk off the grogginess of a flight. Many airports not have fitness facilities or walking paths that can help you keep your body moving in between travelling. If time allows (layovers 4 hours+) you could consider leaving the airport for a quick jog or walk around the surrounding area before getting back in time to catch your next flight. Just remember to set an alarm!
Make Balanced and Informed Food Choices
It can be tempting to indulge when you’re out and about exploring a new city, and we fully encourage you to enjoy the local cuisine! However, if you want to stay feeling your best, it’s important to make sure you’re making balanced food choices. So enjoy the croissants and wine, but perhaps not all day, every day!
Before arriving at your new destination, research local restaurants that offer nutritious choices for breakfast, lunch and dinner so you’re prepared for any time of day. A great way to find delicious food is to ask the locals for their recommendations - if you follow a particular diet e.g. vegan or vegetarian, the local’s recommended hot spots can be incredibly useful for finding amazing specialised eateries off the beaten track!
Remember to pack healthy and nutritious snacks for the road. We love bringing our favourite protein bars, granola, nuts and fruit snacks on our travels just to make sure we always have something on-hand in those must-eat-now moments! This is especially useful if you’ve got long days of travelling ahead.
Rest, Hydrate & Have Fun!
Hydration is key to a healthy and happy mind and body. Grab a travel-safe reusable water bottle and keep it with you (and filled up) on your adventures. From the office and conference hall to the streets of your new city, this handy bottle will not only save you lots of money on drinks, but keep you away from sugary temptations that will leave you feeling sluggish and tired.
Try to keep to a sleep schedule. A lack of sleep can impact your immune system and after travelling, your body is even more depleted than usual! Try to catch some much-needed rest in the first couple of days in your new destination to set you up for an energised trip.
And lastly, have fun! Remember, a healthy business traveller is a more productive and focused one. By incorporating these tips into your routine, you can maintain your well-being and make the most out of your business trips. Safe travels!