Cardio
Most vacation destinations offer a variety of activities that are fun and aerobic such as:
- Walking or jogging on the beach
- Beach volleyball
- Surfing, swimming, snorkeling, skiing or diving
- Leisurely bike rides
- Hiking
- Golf
- Tennis
- Shopping (can be very aerobic under the right circumstances)
These activities can keep you moving without having to 'workout.'
Lifting Weights
Lifting weights is difficult on vacation because you usually don't have any equipment (unless your hotel has a gym and can you say BORING?). To maintain strength and endurance, bring a resistance band and plan on doing a quick workout a few times to maintain your muscle. (You can also use full water bottles to mimic dumbbells).
This Vacation Workout is a full-body routine you can do in less than 10 minutes.
Eating
YUM - vacation food! When traveling, you don't always have healthy choices and, if you do, you don't always want to make them. My advice is to keep your meals as healthy as possible and be picky about splurges. Enjoy yourself by eating things you wouldn't get at home. Save the Cheetos for another time--you can get those anywhere.
How Fast You Lose It
What if you decide to take a break from exercise? How fast you lose endurance and/or muscle depends mostly on your genetics, but here's some general guidelines:
- Aerobic power can decline 5% in one week, 15% in two weeks, and up to 25% in 3 weeks.
- All your gains could be gone after about 2 months of inactivity
- The fitter you are, the faster you lose your fitness (sucks, doesn't it?)
- You tend to lose aerobic capacity faster than muscle strength. Muscles are resilient and retain a memory of all those exercises you did.
Your best bet is to stay active and try to squeeze in something. Oh and have fun. Aloha!
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