How To Avoid Body Breakdowns When Traveling

Wheels down in Salt Lake City. The “I’m here! It’s road trip time!” text was sent and I was scooped from the airport, the adventure just unfolding.

We stopped at my apartment so I could swap the contents of my backpack for things more suited to the Mars-like lands of Moab, Utah – our destination for the week.

Once the car was loaded it was time to hit the road for the four hour drive south for a few epic days of camping and hiking.

Even when it’s full of excitement, travel is notorious for being rough on the body.

But with a bit of action-taking, and by employing a few preventive measures, body breakdowns due to sitting in bucket seats for too many hours don’t have to happen.

I thought you might be taking a trip this summer too, so I made a few videos during the road trip to help you handle your next road trip or travel adventure better!

First up, my favorite stretches to do when you pull into that gas station in the middle of nowhere (and yes, that DVD copy of Michael Jackson’s “This Is It” tour that’s for sale near the checkout is just begging for you to buy it).

The stretches I’m showing here open up your shoulders, back, and chest – and you give you a nice stretch in your hamstrings.

 

 

Then, how to fix your drivers’ seat so that you’re sitting stacked and tall – an important element if you’re going to be driving long hours and don’t want to be broken by it.

 

Next, I’ve got tips from one of the team members at Fit For Real Life, who has been on planes a lot lately as she took a “no end date in sight” trip to Spain!

“What worked out for me was literally NOT sleeping the night before traveling [when travelling through several time zones, as she did, this can be quite helpful, despite being challenging]… and that helped me to be able to sleep or at least rest on the airplane, as well as to help me get used to the different schedule once I landed.

Of course sleeping is important once you get to your destination, I would say give yourself at least 5-6 hrs of straight sleep – even though it might feel most exciting to go out exploring, schedule in the rest time so you’re not caught in days of jet lag.

While traveling on the airplane find a space to stretch once in a while. If there is no space to stretch a bit, lean against the upper luggage compartments and stretch your arms and upper back, you can also walk around back and forth on the aisles.

Also, It is important that you are patient with your body as you get used to a new schedule!”

And finally, a few movement ideas for you to dig into once you’re back from travelling and want to start undoing the aches and tension you might be feeling.

And, it’s a nice bonus that moving around like this post-travel does a lot to help you get back into the normal swing of things again

 

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My online workshop, Kiss Neck And Shoulder Tension Goodbye,
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