Stay fit while travelling. Pay attention.

When you are travelling on business, after a long day of meetings, leaving your hotel and going out into an unfamiliar city to get some exercise can be daunting.

If there is a gym in your hotel, then make the most of it and use the treadmill, exercise bike or some other kind of aerobic exercise to get your body moving, burn some calories, tone your muscles and strengthen your bones.

If this is not possible or you do not have time, we’d like to show you some easy, practical, quick exercises to keep you in shape without even leaving your room. How does that sound?

1. Warm up. Always warm up before you move. If you don’t you are at risk of straining a muscle.
   Start off by walking on the spot for five minutes.
   Do another five minutes, lifting your knees high, taking deep breaths, in through the nose and out through the mouth.
   If you have a treadmill, warm up by walking at six kilometres/hour for ten minutes.

2. Do some stretches to make your joints more flexible.
   Rotate your shoulders up and back. Then raise them up and down.
   Stand with your feet apart and swing your arms back and forward and stretch your back to the left and to the right.
   Rotate your ankles in both directions.
   Balance on one foot for 20 seconds, holding onto your foot behind you. Change legs and repeat.

3. Fantastic! You have warmed up and you’re ready to go. Now it’s time for some squats. You’ve done these before, haven’t you?
   Stand up with your feet a little apart. Now lower yourself into a squatting position, as though you were sitting down on a stool. Control your descent, keeping you back straight, your head high, your abdomen clenched and ensure that your knees stay behind the tips of your toes. Repeat 50 times. That was hard, wasn’t it!

4. Now lie on the floor, resting your elbow on the floor with your hand behind your head.
   Raise your leg without reaching a right angle and lower without supporting it. Repeat 50 times.
   Don’t rest… move your knee in towards your chest and stretch out again.
   Repeat 50 times. The final time, keep your leg slightly bent. Make a kicking movements in front of you. Bend your knee and repeat the kicking movement 25 times. Do the same with the other leg.

5. Have you got any energy left? Start with the sit ups.
   Lie face up with your hands behind your neck and your knees bent. Breathe out as you raise your shoulders from the floor and breathe in as you lower them, keeping them slightly off the floor. Repeat 50 times.

6. Now it’s time for another stretch.
   Lying face up, stretch your arms and legs as though you were pulling them with ropes.
   Sit up and stretch your back by trying to touch your toes.
   Twist your torso as through you were looking for something behind you. First to one side, and then the other.

Take three deep breaths, in through the nose and out through the mouth. That’s it! You’ve got your muscles moving, your heart pumping and activated the respiratory system. Repeat this routine whenever you can and you’ll stay fit without leaving the hotel.

This post is also available in: Spanish