Working out whilst overseas

I thought this would be a great topic for me to write about because I have been travelling for the past 6 months! I've definitely had some struggles trying to fit training into my day, when my day is usually packed with meetings, photoshoots or site seeing.

Whilst overseas for business or pleasure you always tend to over indulge. This is a time where yes you should feel relaxed but your also packing in many more calories that need to be burned off.

Note* To lose weight you need to burn more calories than you consume. In saying that, by all means over indulge but just be prepared to fit in a quick high intensity workout that will help you feel a little less guilty.

Here are two easy ways to achieve a high intensity workout that will burn loads of calories and in a short amount of time!

Quick exercise example one: CARDIO

I have been living in hotels for the most part whilst travelling around Asia and America. In most of the building they have fire escapes. I have been doing this quick exercise routine for years! Stair sprints for a high intensity workout that is sure to burn many calories and quickly!

Try this:

- Start from the ground floor, make sure you have your ipod with your fav tunes pumping, as a warm up, start off with a light run up the stairs I usually will run up as many stairs I can until I am out of breath.
- Turn around and head back down to the bottom
- As soon as you get there don’t wait (your breath will have caught back up) sprint as fast as you can until you are completely out of breath again (hopefully you will be able to go further than you did on your first round) when you get to your max head down the stairs slowly catching your breath
- Repeat this as many times as you feel capable, it really depends on how many stairs you have in your fire escape (I can usually aim to do 5-8 sets)
- If you want an extra burn, try lunging up steps on one round. Also change it up and try one round stepping on every step and then one round of stepping on every second step

Stairs are a great way to tone your legs and bum. This is a high intenstity workout that will tire you out quickly! It is important to push yourself as hard as your body will allow in this short time because it is not a long workout. Doing this type of high intensity workout will get you much better results then jogging on a treadmill at a steady rate and you will burn more calories in a shorter time period.

Quick exercise example two: WEIGHTS

If I am busy and only have two days a week where I can do weight training, I like to incorporate multiple body parts in one workout.  This helps me hit every muscle and is also a quick and easy way to make sure I am keeping up with my weight training. The workout I will be showing you today is aimed at working every muscle group, getting your heart rate high and making it a as quick as possible.

(note:  when my weeks are not too busy I focus on one muscle part per day, training with weights 5 days a week) I also try to include supersets and dropsets whenever possible to challenge myself and get more out of the workout. I will outline these workouts in a future post.

*Use a resistance that makes it tough for you to get out the final two reps but make sure you still have good form, those last few reps are where your muscle is REALLY working so don’t give up and always finish a set

Try this:

- Warm up with a 10min jog on the treadmill/cross trainer or 5min skip
(Do 1 set of each move back to back without resting, then complete this entire circut 4-5times. Take a 1-2min rest in between sets)
- Lunges, 12 lunges on each leg
- Double arm bicep curls, 12 curls- Sumo Squats, 12 deep squats
- Tricep dips, 15 dips (best to do off a bench)
- Chest press, 12 presses
- Jumping jacks, 12 jumps
- Shoulder press, 12 presses

Pushing yourself to your max during exercise can be hard but just keep in mind how amazing you will feel afterwards, you are taking steps to improve your overall health and appearance, that is definitely a reason to keep pushing yourself and making every workout count!

Make sure to have a protein shake within 20 minutes of your workout to help the muscle you just train repair. Why not try my fav protein shake http://dominiqueletoullec.blogspot.com/2011/05/my-new-fav-protein-shake.html

In an upcoming fitness blog, I will take you through my weekly workout. I am currently focusing on strength training and am mostly using weight training to get the results I am after. I will also be posting videos soon so you can see me performing these exercises. I will then be able to show you more complex exercises and also show you how these are preformed correctly.

**This is just a guideline to help get you started, please consult your doctor or personal trainer before you start any exercise and seek attention immediately for any injuries.