It’s perhaps somewhat paradoxical putting convenience alongside exercise, but there are indeed some periods of time when getting in any form of exercise is a welcome convenience if you can fit it in between the demands of a very busy schedule. Primarily, there shouldn’t be anything convenient about exercising, otherwise you’re probably just not working yourself hard enough. Following a concentrated schedule of taxing business trips however, I was personally a little concerned about just how little exercise I was managing to get in.
The Solution?
Taking things back to basics in terms of what exercises one does seems to do the trick for me. I’m talking about your push-ups, sit-ups, elevated dips, leg-raises, squats, and crunches. To cover the all-important cardiovascular exercise needs as well, nothing does the job quite like doing a few laps in the pool, especially since swimming does indeed give one a good full-body workout. However, pools also need regular care to stay in their best shape. So, if you’re lucky enough to have access to a pool in the hotel you put up, you should check whether the pool is in top condition or not. Usually, hotels tend to hire professionals offering pool service dallas (or wherever the hotel is) to maintain their pools and ensure they are safe and clean for guests to use. Ask the hotel staff or front desk if they can provide information about the pool’s maintenance schedule and the last time it was inspected. This will give you peace of mind knowing that the pool is well-maintained and safe for your workouts or leisurely swims during your stay.
If you’re confined to your hotel room, however, the above-mentioned exercises, which essentially require no equipment, should be enough to at least keep you close to your fitness requirements to maintain your optimum conditioning.
The Exercises
If you’re even in the least bit interested in exercising, you’ll already know what these mentioned exercises are and you’ll also have a pretty good idea of how they’re completed. I’d just like to add a little bit of variations to each of these basic exercises because I find that just doing them as is sort of makes them a bit stale. Also, variations add a bit more intensity to ensure the exercises are more powerful, delivering a lot of intensity even if you do them over shortened sessions.
Push-Ups
Push-ups are great at targeting most (if not all) of the upper-body because if you maintain a good form, a completed push-up action engages all of your upper-body muscles to some degree. If you really can’t fit any other exercises in, at least squeeze in a few sets of push-ups. If you want to turn the intensity up a notch however, try doing elevated push-ups. Simply raise your legs with your feet resting on an elevated surface, such as the edge of your bed or the dressing table chair. This will target more than just your upper-body and bring your quadriceps into play as well. Also, you’ll get a much more intense challenge as you lift yourself up off the ground.
Sit-Ups & Crunches
Since you’re targeting your abs with these exercises, you simply have to make time to fit them in. I certainly do because my gut can be the most stubborn area to rid of any fat that has built up. Simple variations to intensify sit-ups and crunches involve planting your feet under a surface which effectively gives you more leverage as you lift your upper body off the ground to complete each rep. Just put your toes under the base of your bed to simulate a gym-buddy holding your feet down as you complete each sit-up or crunch rep.
Elevated Dips
Dips mainly target the triceps and forearms, but if you turn them into elevated dips you will also feel the burn on your abs (my favourite muscle group) and shoulder muscles. Dips are normally elevated to start-off with, but what I mean is that you should also raise your legs and rest them on an elevated surface, in addition to the elevated surface on which you rest your hands.
Leg-raises & Squats
Leg-raises and squats don’t really need any variations to intensify them because the muscle groups targeted are covered if you complete the variations of the other exercises discussed.
Even when you are on the go and travelling you can hire personal trainers in Singapore or elsewhere to work with you online to keep you motivated.
