Family vacations, business trips or the dreaded family reunion back in Philly... traveling is sometimes unavoidable and can really throw a wrench into your workouts. Our Traveling Workout can help you take your workouts on the road and keep your muscles stimulated when you can't make it to the gym.
Cardiovascular exercise is a great way to burn calories, give you energy and can even limit the effects of jet lag. Luckily, this can be done anywhere and doesn't require any special equipment except a good pair of shoes. Take Grandma’s dog out for a walk, go for a short run in the morning or do some site seeing by bicycle rather than in a rental car. You don't have to use the same frequency or intensity of your regular cardio workouts (after all, you are on vacation) but getting some type of cardio exercise can help keep your metabolism up and make it easy to get back into your regular routine when you get home.
Resistance Bands and Tubing
Portable resistance equipment comes in many different forms. Tubing (like a thin
hose) is smaller and thinner and usually has handles or can be wrapped around
and held in the hands. Bands are wider "sheets" of latex that are usually held
in the hands. Both products come in different densities, widths and sizes to
change the resistance. When using the equipment without handles you can shorten
the length (by wrapping it around your hands) to increase resistance even
further. Most resistance bands and tubing can be purchased with attachments for
door jams to increase the number of exercises you can do with them. The further
a band is stretched the more resistance it provides.
Chest:
Standing Chest Press: secure the band or tubing to something sturdy
(around a closet pole, closed in a door, etc) and hold the ends in each hand.
You can wrap the bands or tubing around your hands a few times to increase the
resistance if necessary. Keep your back in proper alignment and bend slightly at
the knees. Start with your elbows at a 90-degree angle and push your hands
forward until your arms are straight. Pause and return to the starting position.
For an standing incline chest press, do the same as above but push your hands away from you and up over your head. Another alternative is a regular chest press. Wrap the band or tubing around your back, lay on the floor and push straight up like doing a bench press. Wrap the bands around your hand to take up some the slack or increase resistance.
Alternating Chest Flye: attach the band or tubing to a door jam and hold handle in one hand. Keep your shoulder blades together, your back in proper alignment and bend slightly at the knees. Bring your hand in towards the center of your body and stop when it reaches your body’s midline. Pause and return to the starting position.
Push Up: support the weight of your body on your toes and hands but keep your back straight (no butts in the air!) throughout the movement. Lower your chest towards the floor, pause and then return to the starting position. You can vary the closeness of your hands to switch the emphasis from your chest to your triceps and shoulders. If you have difficulty doing traditional push-ups you can start out by doing them against a wall or supporting yourself on your knees.
Triceps:
Kickbacks: while standing, secure the band under your feet and hold the
ends in each hand. Bend you knees slightly and bend forward at the waist while
maintaining proper back alignment. Wrap the ends of the bands around your hands
to take up some of the slack. Keep your upper arms parallel to the floor, bend
your elbows and extend your hands back until your arm is straight without
locking your elbow. Pause and return to the starting position.
Overhead Extensions: attach tubing to the top of a door jam and grip handles over your head. Stabilize your body and maintain proper back alignment throughout the movement. It may be more comfortable to stagger your stance and bend the forward knee slightly. Keeping your upper arms parallel to the floor, bend your elbows and extend your arms until your arms are straight without locking your elbows. Pause and return to the starting position.
Shoulders (Deltoids and Traps):
Trapezius Retraction: attach the band or tubing to a door jam at
shoulder height. Hold the handles in your arm and keep your arms straight
throughout the movement. Retract your shoulder blades as close together as
possible, pause and then return to the starting position. To change this
exercise to focus more on the deltoids, repeat the movement as above except pull
your elbows back and stop when they're at a 90-degree bend.
Lateral Raises: stand with tubing under both feet and the handles in each hand. Keeping your elbows straight, lift your arms away from your body until your hands are at shoulder height. Pause and return to the starting position.
Abdominals:
The standard crunch and it’s variations can be done anywhere. Remember to keep
your abdominal tight during the movement and don't pull with your hands. You can
also do hanging leg lifts from a bar, tree branch or barn rafter (hey it worked
for Rocky).
Back:
Pull-Up: you'll need to find a bar or something that you can hang from
that supports your body weight. These can be done with an overhand or underhand
grip to add a little variety. For an overhand pull-up, your hands should grip
the bar a little wider than your shoulder width. Lift yourself up and bring your
chest towards the bar. Pull-ups behind the neck put the shoulder joint in an
unnatural position and are a less effective stimulus for your latissimus dorsi
muscle. An underhand pull-up will place a little more emphasis on your biceps;
your hands should grip the bar a little closer, at shoulder width. Again, lift
your chest towards the bar and bring your elbows close to your body.
Seated Row: sit on the floor and extend your legs without locking your knees. Place resistance bands or tubing around the bottom of your feet and hold the handles or ends of the bands in your hands. Wrap the tubing around your hands to take up some of the slack. Keep your knees slightly bent and your upper body still throughout the movement. Pull your hands back towards your abdomen, keeping your elbows close to your body. Concentrate on keeping your shoulder blades together (especially when you extend to the starting position) and imagine pulling the resistance back with your elbows. This will help you isolate the latissimus dorsi muscle and limit the use of your biceps. Extend your arms back to the starting position without locking your elbows.
One Arm Cable Row: attach resistance tubing to a door at a level near the floor. Stand in front of the door with your knees slightly bent. Bend slightly forward at the waist but keep your back straight. Grab the handle of the tubing in one hand and extend your arm forward without locking your elbow. Pull the handle towards your abdomen, keeping your elbow close to your body. Again, concentrate on keeping your shoulder blades together and pulling back with your elbow to isolate the latissimus dorsi. Switch hands to work the other side.
Lower Back: lie on your stomach on the floor with your hands extended over your head. Raise your left leg and your right arm off the floor and hold for as long as possible. Slowly lower and repeat with your right leg and your left arm. Stop if you feel any sharp pains and be careful if you've had any previous back injuries.
Biceps:
Biceps curls: stand with resistance bands or tubing under your feet.
Hold the ends of the bands or the handles of the tubing in your hands and keep
your knees slightly bent. Wrap the tubing around your hands to take up some of
the slack. Curl your arms up, keeping your elbows and upper arms close to your
body. Try using a palm up grip and a palm down grip (reverse biceps curl)
because it will stimulate the muscle differently and get better results.
Concentration curls: sit on the edge of a chair with a resistance band around your left foot. You may need to widen your stance or double up the resistance band to shorten the length. Hold both ends in your right hand and rest your elbow against the inside of your right thigh. Curl your arm up and then lower to the starting position. Change sides and repeat with the opposite arm. Try to keep your back as straight as possible.
Legs:
Squat: stand with your feet shoulder width apart with resistance tubing
underneath both feet. Hold the handles in your hands at shoulder height (as if
you were holding a bar on your shoulders). Bend at the knees and lower yourself
towards the floor. Make sure your knees stay over your feet (don't bend them out
towards the sides) and your feet should stay flat on the floor at all times.
It’s also important not to bend at the waist, maintain a neutral back position
throughout the movement. The range of motion is very short for this exercise.
Squatting too low puts unnecessary stress on the knees and lower back and
there’s no muscle building benefits.
Butt and Hamstring Raise: lie on your back in front of a stable chair. Place the heel of your right foot on the seat of the chair and extend your other leg in the air. With your right heel only, lift you butt and lower body off the floor as far as you can, keeping your upper back and shoulders on the floor. Hold at the top of the movement for a few seconds and then lower until your butt is almost touching the floor. Repeat the movement as many times as you can then switch legs and repeat with the other side. Stop if you feel any pain in your lower back and use caution if you've had any previous back injuries.
One-legged Calf Raise: place a phone book on the floor near a wall. Step up on the phone book with your right foot and balance by holding on to the wall. Slowly lift your right heel up until you're on the ball of your foot and then slowly lower until your heel is almost touching the floor. Repeat as many times as you can and then switch legs.
This Traveling Workout can help you maintain your level of fitness while on the road or if you just feel like working out at home once in awhile. You can add exercises or use an exercise ball for a more challenging workout and different muscle stimulation. Remember: form and focus! Using proper form and focusing on the muscle you're exercising is the best way to isolate the muscle and get a good workout. You'll find you have more energy and less jet lag when on the road and it won't take you 2 weeks to get back into your normal routine when you get back in the gym.