3 Years In A Car…

My Dad has figured out that he has spent 3 years of his entire life (aged 50) travelling in his car…

That’s 24hrs a day, 365 days a year x 3! Or 1095 days and 26,280 hrs!

For want of a better word that’s . . . Madness!

He’s a very successful business man, who works long hrs and is always travelling.

Despite travelling, he has managed to get himself extremely fit in the past year and I would like to share with you how we have done it so you can get fit too. Just like many of you reading this he wanted to Get Fit on the Road : Save Money & Save Time.

What are the 2 things we want more of?

1) Time

2) Money

So if you are a businessman or businesswomen who wants to Get Fit on the Road : Save Money & Save Time , then this article is written especially for you.

Portable Equipment. . .

If your on the road, you probably find it difficult to commit to a gym membership, certain hotels may have gyms, others may not. The problem is your relying on luck. Here’s a list (taking into consideration all budgets) of ways to get fit on the road, without needing a gym membership.

ZERO Budget:

1) Bodyweight Exercises

Are a) fantastic and b) free, here is a list of my top 10 bodyweight exercises:

1. Push Ups
2. Squats
3. Glute Bridge
4. Plank
5. Crunches
6. Back extensions
7. Lunges
8. Side raises (no weights)
9. Air Punches
10. Calf raises

2) Running 

All you need for this is a pair of running trainers – which you probably own already? If not you could get a cheap pair of running trainers for less than £30. Running is a great way to build up your cardio fitness, leg endurance and to destress after a long day of working on the road.

3) Walking

Many people underestimate the power of walking. Walking won’t place as much stress on the joints compared to running. It’s a great way to burn calories, get fresh air, destress and get out in some natural daylight. All of these benefits will help you improve your health, fitness, and sleep. Aim to complete at least 5,000 steps per day (the more you can do the better!)

Medium Budget:

1) Resistance Band £10-£20 

Extremely effective for working on all areas of the body, you can fit them easily into your suitcase or handbag, they weigh very little and allow you to train anywhere with very little space needed. I’d recommend trying this 8-week resistance band training program next time you’re on the road. You could do this workout in a hotel room with very minimal space.

2) Skipping Rope – less than £10

Phenomenal way to increase stamina, release stress and burn fat in a short period of time. A personal favourite skipping workout of mine is to put your I Pod on shuffle, and skip for the duration of the song. You can also burn up to 100 calories in a 5 minute skip

3) Ankle Weights – less than £15 

Put a pair of ankle weights on during the day and you could burn between 300-400 calories extra per day (40 calories per hour)

4) Sandbag £30-£60

I bought an RDX sandbag a few years ago and it’s awesome. You can get different weighted bags, the one I bought was 25kg and it allows you to train all of the muscles in your body: arms, legs, core, back, you name it. You can easily store the sandbag in the boot of your car. If a sandbag appeals to you then I’d recommend checking out this post I wrote – I share 20 sandbag exercises with you in a video format.

Higher Budget:

1. Online Personal Training : £100 per month

If you can afford online personal training this could be a great way to keep you accountable. Your personal trainer will design a workout program that fits in with your travel and create a program that is bespoke to your goals.

2. TRX : £150 pounds

The TRX is more expensive, however say you use them 120 days of the year (1 in every 3 days), the cost per session is 1 pound 25p! That’s less than bottle of water from the petrol station. They are like the resistance bands, but more robust and allow you to do a wide variety of exercises with very little space.

The 5 minute Workout

If you want to Get Fit on the Road : Save Money & Save Time on workouts then design yourself a workout which you can complete in 5 minutes a day. If you cannot commit to 5 minutes per day then you need a rain check, even the President get’s 5 minutes a day to exercise! 5 minutes in the morning can psyche you up for the day and 5 minutes in the evening could help you to distress and unwind.

Here is a bodyweight circuit that will take you less than 5 minutes. This will get you going and give you some ideas so you can create your own On The Road workout . . .

• 10 push ups
• 15 crunches
• 20 Star jumps
• 25 squats
• 30 air punches

Why are you doing this?

Motivation will only last you for so long, you may keep up the routine for a few days, but remember it takes 3 weeks to make something a habit. Before starting on your program, think about why you are training, dig deep and look into what you value. Saying things like . . .

• I want to lose weight
• I want to build muscle

Have loose meanings, and are unlikely to keep you going in the long term. Get to the route of why you want to change, the stronger the reason, the more likely you are to succeed. Some good examples:

• I want to buy a new, slimmer suit, so i can wear it at the Awards night next month. It’s important to me to feel confident in front of my peers.
• My job is highly stressful I will channel my frustrations into a 5 minute exercise session Monday to Friday to help me relax and feel better about each day.

I hope you have gained some insight as to how you can Get Fit on the Road : Save Money & Save Time by using a few simple tricks. If you have any questions I would love to hear from you. I can also design you a Get Fit on the Road exercise program tailored towards your fitness goals. You can contact me HERE

Thanks,

Nick Screeton – Founder of Lep Fitness personal training based in South Yorkshire