Spring break differs depending on the person. For the college co-ed the week off might mean bikinis and cocktails on the beach, while a mom of three might be booking passes for the kiddos to meet Mickey and Minnie. But no matter how different your spring break plans may look from that of other people’s, every spring brink has one thing in common: the potential for fat burning!
Not what you were thinking? Not surprising given getaways tend to be equated with indulgent eating and indulgent resting. However, even leisure-laden downtime can allow for opportunities to burn fat and stick to your body goal plans.
How to Workout on Vacation
No matter what you envision for the seasonal downtime, don’t overlook all the great ways you can workout on vacation! Below are common ways people tend to spend their spring breaks. Find the plans that best suit your style for ideas on how to add more hustle to your holiday.
- Beach Vibes: If sand and sea are you scene, break up the time you lie around in a lounge chair with fun activities to boost your heart rate. A few of our favorites to try:
- Start a beach volleyball match.
- Play Frisbee.
- Go swimming.
- Take a long walk along the water.
- Paddle in a kayak or boat, or on a paddle board.
- Kick a soccer ball among friends.
- Do yoga poses in the sand.
- Go for a run.
- Turn the sand and water into an HIIT-style obstacle course.
- Learn a new outdoor sport, such as kite boarding or sailing.
- Adventure Awaits: If lying around sounds like a waste of time, you’re likely already aware of all the ways to workout on vacation. However, if you need some new ideas, give these heart-pumping activities a try.
Take a hike…no really! - Hike a new trail.
- Ski or snowboard in the mountains.
- Learn to surf at a week-long camp.
- Skip the car and take a bike tour instead.
- Take the family whitewater rafting.
- Do a ropes course for climbing and zip lining.
- Saddle up for a dude ranch.
- Go exploring on cave, jungle, and other natural attraction tours.
- Tourist Trek: It’s a great big world out there, and you don’t want to waste one second not seeing as much as you can. While the activities you prefer may not be adrenaline inducing, that doesn’t mean there aren’t plenty of ways to make them more active.
- Skip the escalators and elevators in exchange for stairs.
- Instead of renting a car, get around from place to place on foot or on bike.
- When waiting in line for theme park rides, instead of standing around, challenge your group to squat holds, jumping jacks, and in-place high knee runs. Bonus points if you can get more people in line moving!
- Speed walk in between attractions, challenging you and your group to beat your previous times.
- Start and end each day in your hotel with a good stretch session.
- Staycation Time: If your spring break will be spent at home, that doesn’t mean you can’t include new ways to workout on your vacation. Instead of sticking to your usual routine, switch things up over the week by adding in a few of the following.
- Try a new style of workout class, such as barre, spin, Pilates, or boxing.
- Tour your town on foot or by bike to see what’s changed since you first moved in.
- Spring clean your kitchen to stock up on more seasonal produce for cooking new cuisines.
- Instead of a girls’ night out for wine, gather the group for a walk at the park.
- Play! Whether you have kids or not, add some childlike fun to your day by shooting hoops at the park, swinging on the swing set, jumping rope.
You can still relax and enjoy your spring break without derailing your fat-burning goals. Each day, look for a new activity to do to workout on vacation, and when it’s time to go back to the grind, you can do so without any guilt.
What are your spring break plans? Share with others in the comments!
Carrie Anton is a freelance writer focusing on health, fitness, and sports. She's been published in Self, Women's Health, Oxygen, and Maximum Fitness.
Leave a Reply