Alright, today’s post is about goals and travel (as stated in the title) because sometimes they are a juxtaposition to one another. Goals can be met with plans, they can be foreseeably achieved. Travel is chaotic with nutrition and fitness. But getting them to work together lessens the hiccups in achieving your goals.

Of course, I cannot speak from experience here because I got stuck in Texas last week for way longer than intended and I did NOT manage to make goals and fitness work together. But if I could go back and change it, I have some adjustments I would have made (hindsight is 20/20).

Setting Goals

I’m going to keep it short and simple for goal setting. There are so many different guides for how you should set goals, but these are threebasic concepts to help with the process:

• Start Small

Goals should be small enough to achieve. Sometimes I think too big and lose the very real motivation that I have to keep going. For example, losing five pounds in a week is incredibly difficult, likely very bad for you, and unsustainable. Five pounds in a month or two, however? Very achievable with the right amount of determination.

• Give yourself time to achieve your goals

You can’t achieve things overnight, so give time for yourself to actually reach your goals. Make sure you have time to make adjustments to what you are doing, if needed. Keep the determination high.

• Keep them in sight

Like I said in a previous post, health and fitness aren’t passive habits; they need to be active. So keep goals in a journal, on your phone, make a poster, somewhere you will see them actively throughout your day.

Navigating Travel

Now travel makes all that complicated. I road-tripped to and from Texas last week, and there were minimal health choices being made. Seriously, I ate out so much and barely did any physical activity other than moving out. It was a wrench in all my goals, so here’s what I would have done differently:

• Packed gear for walking/running outside, including workout clothes, gym shoes, and headphones.
• Woken up with morning coffee – I didn’t have coffee for almost the entire trip. It was hard.
• Brought more clothes in general

This one specifically was a hindering point because I like to be in fresh, clean, and comfy clothes after I work out, and I only packed for three days. We stayed a week because my car broke down. Thus, I didn’t want to get all sweaty in workout clothes when I had nothing else to change into. A good workout outfit can do wonders for motivation.

So, with travel, PLAN AHEAD. Know if the hotel you are staying in has a gym, find a good walking trail, look for healthy alternatives when eating. There are endless possibilities, but being prepared helps you act out that plan.

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Next we are talking about the holidays as we approach the summer season with Fourth of July, grad parties (maybe), and other festivities!