Easy Travel Workout Tips To Keep in Summer Shape

By Binu Dhindsa @ZumbawithBinu

Well it’s finally summer! It’s not blazing hot like our families are experiencing in India, but the shorts and tank tops are out. My kids and I check the temperature in Delhi on my iPhone quite often as it’s interesting for them to see how hot it is over there. It’s funny, because in my mind sometimes when it gets hot here, we wear less clothing. The shorter shorts and skirts, the tank tops and crop tops.

Yet in India they actually wear longer clothing, lighter material to cover up the parts of the body that are exposed to the sun and heat. I often think I will try that tactic out one day but for now I am sticking to my shorts and tank tops to help me feel cool.

Summertime brings more travelling, more eating out and more indulging. Summer also brings more family time and more local farm fresh fruit and vegetables.

But how do we keep our bodies moving and eating healthy when we are travelling and moving about with the kids all day? How do we keep ourselves feeling fit and energized while on the move this summer? I have some of my personal tips here for you, to help you feel great for the rest of the summer. Summer travel brings more socialization, more fun and yes you know it, more calories! And for many of us women, those calories go right to our mid section.

How do we ensure that we don’t put on excess weight this summer? Many of us don’t want to spend the summer cutting calories however we can start making a few changes to help us feel more energy and lighter around that waistline. We can get a grasp on it all before it gets out of hand.   But before we dive into some of my most effective abdominal exercises, let’s stress a few things. 

1. Abs are made in the kitchen! I know you didn’t want to hear that but it’s true. Clean eating is key to achieve any change or even maintenance in our midsections. Reducing alcohol and refined sugar is a good start along with the exercises below to help us along this summer.
2. Avoid overtraining the abs – it’s not necessary to go crazy doing 100 crunches everyday. Doing a few exercises at high intensity every other day is all you need.

Whether you are travelling abroad or driving somewhere local, abdominal exercises are always great things to do as you can really do them anywhere. You can do them in a hotel room, on the beach, or in a living room. They also help our backs from getting sore while sitting in planes or cars for long periods of time. Add these in along with a few sets of squats and pushups and you have the most ideal travelling workout with no equipment needed but your body.

Here are 3 of my favourite abdominal exercises to add to your exercise regime to help keep those mid sections looking good this summer.

Lying Leg Drop.

Lying down on a mat on your back with your arms by your side or under your lower back, raise both legs up and suck in your belly in to your spine. Slowly lower one leg down and up at a time, contracting the muscles in the abdomen as you raise the leg back up. Do 5-20 reps depending on your fitness level.

Rolldown

This is a Pilates inspired exercise. Lying on a mat, stretch your arms overhead and bend your knees keeping your feet on the floor. Take a breath in. As you exhale, bring your arms towards your legs and roll up slowly releasing one bone at a time from the floor. Sit up straight at the top and take a deep breath in. As you exhale, suck your belly in, drop your chin to your chest and slowly roll down to the mat, one bone at a time. Repeat 5-20 times based on your fitness level.

Plank.

Lye down on a mat with your hands by your side. Lift up to your knees or toes, having your body aligned in one straight line. You can be on your elbows or your hands. With each breath in let your belly expand. With each exhale lift your belly into your spine. Slow and controlled breaths are the way to go with this plank. Repeat your breaths 5-20 times depending on your fitness level.

Check out the video below to follow the exercises along with the trainer.

You want to work up to feeling the burn during the exercise. Pair these up with clean eating and you will continue to feel great for the rest of the summer. Remember to always warm up before any exercise program and cool down and stretch after any exercise program.

Looking for more exercise ideas and to learn about my one on one personalized fitness programs, contact binu@binu.ca or check out www.binu.ca.

This post is for informational purposes only. Please consult your physician before beginning any new new fitness regimes.

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