While packing for vacation you may be wondering if you should replace your workout clothes with more shoes.
After all, this is vacation right?
The entire point is to take a break from it all and that includes workouts too right?
If you Google searched “should I work out on vacation”, you would find over 40 million different AND correct answers.
But which answer is correct for you?
Here are five things to consider to come up with YOUR perfect answer on the vacation workout question.
Consider Your Goals
What are you working to achieve?
Before blindly following vacation workout advice, consider what is necessary to reach your goals.
Skipping your workouts can be great for weight maintenance or after a period of intense training.
If you are in the thick of your weight loss journey or struggle with consistency then you keeping the daily sweat sessions will likely be beneficial.
Consider Your Non-Exercise Vacation Activity Level
Is your idea of a great vacation kayaking in the lake and hiking in the mountains, reading by the pool and exploring all of the local eateries, or all of the above?
When it comes to your vacation workout approach, how active you are outside of your workouts matters.
If you are on a weight loss journey and your favorite vacation activities are relatively inactive, skipping your daily sweat session may not be the most beneficial choice. However, if your vacation activities are really active, swapping your normal workouts for more time enjoying your favorite vacation activities could work out just right for you.
Consider Your Vacation Eating Habits
You knew this one was coming right? Can I just share something with you? If my family goes on vacation, you BETTER BELIEVE that we are checking out the famous local eateries to see what all of the hype is about EVEN IF they are not famous for figure friendly food.
THIS is how we roll….
If you looked at those pictures of my family HAPPILY waiting in a ridiculously long line at a famous San Diego donut shop and thought “Yesssss- that’s my kind of vacation” then keep those daily sweat sessions going.
If you question my sanity (and maybe even credibility as a fitness strategist) for standing in a line that long to get donuts because you would never be caught dead eating a donut except during specified cheat meals then happy reading to you. Go ahead and swap that gym time for poolside reading if you want.
Consider Your Vacation Wardrobe
Can we say this together?
As someone who has done this before (OK maybe more than once), still looking great in my vacation clothes at THE END of the vacation is well worth the 10-20 minutes I spend sweating each day.
If you enjoy wearing clothes that show off your curves then you may want to embrace vacation workouts. Restaurant food is much higher in sodium than homemade food. The higher sodium leads to water retention and tight clothes when you neglect the strategies that flush water out of your system. Working out is one of those strategies.
If you are eating restaurant food for most of your meals while on vacation, daily sweat sessions can keep you feeling great in those cute vacation clothes.
On the other hand if your vacation wardrobe is full of loose fitting clothes with drawstrings and elastic then you may feel that the water retention is no big deal and still choose to skip your vacation workout.
Consider Your Outlook
I saved this one for last because it really is the most important.
No matter what your weight goals are, consider how you will FEEL if you didn’t work out for days on end. If you will feel rested and ready to continue your journey regardless of the physical outcome of skipping your workouts then go for it. However if you will feel regret when the vacation is over then don’t skip your workouts.
There you have it- everything you need to consider to decide for yourself if vacation workouts are for you.
Go ahead and let your friends know too by clicking on the tweetable below.
Do you work out on vacation? Why or why not? Let me know in the comments below.
Leave A Comment