Travel fitness levels

Travel may be about new experiences, thrill of adventure, joy of serendipity and leisure and lazing and more. However, it may come as a surprise that many people display a lack of confidence to take on a travel adventure or trip due to the fear of physical strain and mental strain arising from planning or during a trip and surely exhaustion from a trip they didn’t expect to be physically demanding. Hence, it’s best to balance fitness with travel.

My two decades of travels have included extraordinary moments. However, feedback from fellow travellers have helped me learn. Missing out fantastic experiences due to poor planning; avoiding visiting amazing spots because it demanded steep climbs, arduous treks, stiff backs, injuries and sore calves and not being physically and mentally prepared and more.
Here are 10 travel tips to be confident and fit to travel:

1. Best travel posture

Simple neck and back stretches done regularly and neck exercises done intermittently while travelling in a car, flight or train can make you avoid a stiff neck and shoulder. Maintaining a good sitting posture instead of slouching and slumping in your seat for long hours will be of help.

2. Building stamina

Stamina building exercises or HIIT (High-Intensity Interval Training) done even twice a week are useful if you plan on going on long treks, hikes and climbs. There are many apps easily available for this on your phone; no gym, instructor, nor equipment required.

3. Strengthening the knees

focus on moves that work your hamstrings, quadriceps, glutes, and hip muscles. Even if it sounds like a lot, simple Calf raises. Hamstring curl & Leg extensions will do the job.

4. Gut health

Gut health is very important for trouble free travel. Eat clean for a week before your travel and avoid uncooked food, unpacked cold food during your trip.

5. Plan travel fitness

Go through each point of your itinerary and note what fitness you require to enjoy the place to the optimum – is it a strong neck, back, or knees or build your immunity towards the cold; whichever it is, a month of prepping and preventive steps can be of immense help.

6. Facilities

This one is more for women, especially while travelling in India. The absence of hygienic lavatory facilities more specifically during a car journey is a big deterrent. Kegel exercises are simple clench-and-release movements that women can do during their everyday activities to make the muscles of the pelvic floor stronger. Benefits - decreases high urinary frequency.

7. Travel restlessness

It’s not uncommon to feel restless race of the traveler's heart before a journey begins, when anxiety and anticipation are tangled together. We all go through little or more of it even after 100 trips. Don’t let ‘travel anxiety’ deter you from making that trip.

8. Pole prop

Invest in a good trekking pole for use during long walks and hikes. Get an anti-shock one as it reduces the pressure on our legs and minimizes chances of falls.

9. Sensible dressing

Long nails getting uprooted while handling luggage, large ear hoops getting stuck in the rappelling rope, finger rings causing injury when taking sudden floor support to save a small fall while walking on a pebbly pathway – these visuals during my trips have remained with me. We need those inviting Instagram images but not at the cost of accidents due to fashion faux pas. Leave those airport looks to celebs travelling with designer teams!

10. Travel smart

Travel during the shoulder season in between peaks and absolute lows. This will help you avoid the crowds and high tariffs as well as save you from the discomforts or lack of offers during low seasons; after all those are ‘low’ because there are inconveniences – too hot, too cold, too much rain or something else.

The writer is a life coach and intrepid traveler and can be found at

India Homepage: https://www.lonelyplanet.com/en-in