Road warriors are an amazingly creative and resilient bunch of people. I was reminded of this recently when I gave a presentation at a convention for health club owners and managers.
As could be expected, most were walking, talking models of physical excellence; not an extra ounce of body fat to be found in the whole convention center.
Even more impressive were the “newest and best” models of exercise equipment being hawked to the attendees in the exhibit hall. Every imaginable implement of workout torture was on display and those machines could do virtually anything. They talked, linked the user to the Internet, gave instant blood chemistry analysis and just about predicted the weather.
Oh, one other thing. They also cost the equivalent of a small yacht. Indeed, they were designed to lighten both bodies and wallets.
The story gets even better. As I got to know many of the attendees, I was amazed by their low cholesterol levels and equally low levels of creativity. They constantly griped about not being able to keep up their workout regimen.
“The exercise room in my hotel isn’t open 24 hours!”
“I can’t believe the beat-up exercise machines in the hotel spa, how could anyone use that stuff?”
“How do people stay in shape while traveling … so much food, so little time to get in a good run!”
My response? Boo hoo hoo!
Welcome to my world! Welcome to the world of the forever-traveling-road-warrior who hasn’t seen the inside of real gym in, like … forever. Welcome to the world of the business traveler who gets goose-bumps at the mere sight of a set of stairs next to the escalator in a convention center — it’s the equivalent of the world’s biggest Stairmaster!
How about the airport terminal? It’s an all-weather gym just waiting to be used.
Find some quiet little corner and turn it into your own workout room; break out those stretch bands, do pushups against the wall of chairs, or just do some shoulder shrugs while waiting for the next announcement about flight delays.
So I salute road warriors who, in spite of the many opportunities and temptations to skip staying in shape, refuse to cave in. Let there be no excuses, anyone can stay in reasonable shape on the road. The only things you need in your metaphorical gym bag are: determination, creativity, a dash of zaniness and, sometimes, an attitude of “I don’t care how I look right now, these back stretches feel really good!”
What creative exercise and nutrition strategies do you use on the road?
“Obstacles are those frightful things you see when you take your eyes off your goal.” — Henry Ford
Doug Lipp is the author of Stuck in the Middle Seat.
