Getting fit for your trip?

[WillTravel]

If you are a typical budget traveler, you probably end up walking a lot. A typical day might involve walking 1 km from the train station to your accommodation with your luggage, hoisting your luggage up three flights of stairs (by now you will be convinced you overpacked), running up and down between the room and the lobby several times per day, walking 10-15 km all over the city, and climbing several hundred steps in the course of visiting historical attractions or using public transport. You might even do some mountain or forest hiking.

Anyway, I'm sure a lot of people here are already very fit, but I find that a budget travel routine tends to get me noticeably fitter after a couple weeks than before I started.

For my next trip, though, I'd like to start with this level of activity being easy at the start. That means more exercise now. So far I'm being pretty lazy about it, but I have increased my walking quite a bit. I think the Stairmaster and making an effort to get as many hills in as possible will help too.

What are some challenging physical activities you have done on an active trip? For example, mountain-climbing, long-distance biking, etc.

I'm somewhat interested in those trips that involve substantial walking every day - walking tours through Tuscany or across the Pyrenees, etc. Has anyone done any of those trips?

(BTW, I'm not suggesting you have to be physically vigorous to do budget travel. To make things a little easier, albeit a little more expensive, you would have to arrange things to take a cab now and then, take buses frequently instead of walking everywhere, and arrange for accommodation on a lower floor or in a place with an elevator.)

[izaguf]

I did some snowboarding the last time I was in Switzerland, while it isn't that physically demanding sliding down a mountain on a board it really is a physical strain walking around the town in heavy boots and carrying your board.

[Numbers]

What a fantastic thread!

I think your thread illustrates that travelling isn't quite as easy as we'd all like to hope.

In terms of preparation for my holiday and general fitness, I have been walking 7km every day for over a month now. I'm hoping that by next year it will be at least 15 km a day. In turn, I'll incorporate weights and begin working on upper body strength.

I'd just like to say that the other benefit of exercise is not only fitness but a more positive image of yourself. When you feel better about yourself, other's will pick up on it. My experience is that people are more likely to help someone that is confident and less likely to mug them.

I wonder what everyone else does to prepare.

[Kim]

I was in decent shape when we went to Europe and let me tell you, I was DYING in the beginning! The weight of the pack and the distances we walked with it (cheapness won over fatigue ;D)..

By the end of the 7 months, I was so strong and had lost a ton of weight - even eating like a pig. We ate whatever we wanted - waffles and chocolate in Belgium, pasta in Italy, souvalaki in Greece, crepes in Frace... Just goes to show what great exercise it is for you!

Here at home, I tried to watch what I eat and make an effort to exercise and it doesn't work nearly as well!

Kim

[LHR02]

Yep, timely and great thread. I was a gym-oholic for most of this year, but had fallen off the wagon at the end of the summer with noticiable results the past few months. Have just begun really hitting the workouts again the past two weeks.....and what completely drove me back was knowing I was leaving in two months for Italy. Of course I want to 'look' my best, but that isn't what gets into the car at 0530 4 mornings a week.....it's knowing the amount of walking, climbing, standing and carrying I will be doing. I wasn't in very good shape at all for my first long trip, and it was hard hard hard in the beginning. Like Kim, my fitness increased dramatically over the months I was gone. This being a much shorter journey I want to be able to hit the ground running so to speak and I know that requires the committment and time now. And with those words of wisdom.......my trainer is waiting for me, gotta go!

ging

[snorkelman]

Every time that i visit Europe to backpack I do the same thing. I lose weight. I always eat whatever I want in Europe without regard to grams of fat (very unlike what I do at home).

If you don't already exercise or workout, in preparation, you should work up to walking a few miles a day without any pain. Then when you can do that, strap on your big backpack and try to work your way up to a mile or two with a fully-loaded pack. That will be a realistic way to see how hard it will be. That will also encourage you to reduce some of the crap in your bag!

[cnlneenan2]

This is a great thread! Both of us are typically in good shape (but that's based on NOT carrying a heavy backpack everywhere nor walking everywhere). Kim and whoever else, when you were exhausted at the beginning, was it mostly a cardiovascular type of exhausted or more strength related? If muscle, what areas of your body took the most beating (legs, back, arms, etc.)?

We're going to be getting into better shape prior and want to focus on what would be most effective. If shoulders and back were sore often or strained then we'll target that...if it was merely just being tired then we'll be sure to do lots of cardio. I'm foreseeing that it's going to be a lovely combination of those!

[LHR02]

For me it was most often strength related. My darn packed weighed so much there was no way I was going anywhere in a hurry! However, simply walking with it was a great cardio workout believe me. Not sure about what others will say but the one area that bothered me throughout, even with just my day pack, was my shoulders/neck. Right where your shoulders and the back of your neck meet....ouch! And my knees! Nearly blew one out on the 'long' trip and almost had to come home, but that was in truth more of a strain from stepping down wrong that was continually aggrevated by so much walking. Day in and day out, it was my shoulders and upper back that was aching.

[Kim]

I was in great shape at the time of my trip - but honestly, carrying a heavy backpack is a whole other ballgame. I even weighted it and walked around without before leaving but nothing kind of prepares you.

Granted ours were probably heavier than average having to carry both summer and winter clothes as it was a long trip but yikes!

We also walked ALOT rather than using public transportation most of the times - often we thought things were walking distance when we should have just caught the bus! But then with the whole language barrier thing, walking often was just easier.

A good part of it was definately shoulder and back ache - especially for me. My pack wasn't as great as my boyfriends <now fiancee ;D> and that hurt me. Also, I have arthritis in a part of my back that it really aggrevated it.

Also, the main one, the freaking heat. It's hard enough packing that thing around but add scorching heat and it makes it a bit of a nightmare.

It's not really something you can totally prepare for but your body does adjust. It's just a matter of time, really. Then again, everyone travels differently. When we chose to walk, others may have chosen to take the bus and not felt the effects like we did.

Walking was a time saver though - had one too many bus rides where the driver is supposed to tell you where to get off and never does - and you go all over the freaking place!!

Kim