Hello from the suburbs of Los Angeles. While it was tough to leave Seattle, Bo and our friends this morning, this morning view from the airplane made it much better. The flight from Seattle to Los Angeles featured some gorgeous scenery!
Today was my transition day back to reality after an amazing five day vacation in Seattle. In case you missed any of our adventures, here are the posts from vacation:
Over the Narrows 10 Mile Race Recap
Even though it was a really active vacation, I still feel like my body needs a break from the delicious wines and good food. Luckily, we started each morning off on a healthy foot with either a smoothie or granola along with a nice, strong Seattle coffee from one of their nearby coffee shops. But, as the day progressed, especially the evenings, the wine flowed freely as our adventures lasted into the late evening hours.
I fully believe in enjoying vacations to the fullest and therefore am going to use these next few days to get back on track. It won’t be that easy since I’m out in Los Angeles on business this week until Friday night. But, with a little planning and discipline, I believe it’s possible to push reset even while traveling for business. There is no feeling worse than swollen fingers, a lethargic body, tired eyes, and overall puffiness.
Five Tips for Getting Your Body Back on Track Anywhere, Anytime
- Water! Luckily my hotel room is stocked with complimentary bottles of water. Since I left my reusable water bottle in NYC by accident, I’ll reuse these two bottles to ensure I always have water with me. I’ve already gone through 8 refills today, proof that my body was definitely dehydrated.
- Decrease the caffeine. People have their own opinions about caffeine but I find cutting it out 100% or at least reducing it helps me reset my body by setting me up for better sleep, calmer mood and mentality, and actually more energy.
- Sleep While I actually enjoyed almost 8 hours of sleep each night on this vacation, many times when my body feels lethargic or as if I’m retaining water or bloated, it can be attributed to not getting enough rest. Sleep helps us in so many ways but first and foremost it is our bodies time to relax and repair. I cut out evening reading, cell phone use, and social media checks when I’m trying to get more sleep as this helps ensure I go to bed calm and helps me fall asleep faster. I also make sure to shut all the shades in the room so there is no light coming in the room.
- Move more! When I’m trying to jumpstart my body, I’ll add 15 minutes to my normal workout routine. Therefore, if my marathon training calls for a 4 mile run, I’ll add an additional 15 minutes of either weights, incline walking, abs, or spinning. These extra few minutes just leave me sweating a little bit more and give me an extra boost of confidence and energy. If I’m crunched for time, I sometimes will add these 15 minutes in at some other time in the day whether it’s 15 minutes of night time yoga before bed or abs/pushups/squats as soon as I wakeup.
- Go natural As someone who has never cut out processed foods 100% this one is the toughest but most effective thing for me when I’m trying to feel less bloated and just better overall. Today I’ve done my best to reach for fruit or almonds instead of processed bars and have cut artificial sweeteners out as well.
Keep in mind, I’m not a registered dietician or nutritionist. These are just a few tips and tricks that I’ve learned over the years that work for my body.
What helps you get back on track after a few too many days of indulging?
Love the post! I’m also in getting back on track mode after my trip. Stocking up on fruits and veggies is key for me. I also try to ease back into exercise if I haven’t worked out in a while (even though it sounds like you definitely got some good exercise in) instead of forcing myself to have intense workouts right off the bat. And taking it light on the going out/alcohol for a few days helps too!
GREAT tips! I have been in AZ more this month than I was in GA and I am SO looking forward to getting back to my normal next week.
I definitely make sure to drink extra water when I’m looking to reset after a few days of indulgence. I also like to add some extra yoga to my schedule, even if it’s just 20 minutes at home if I don’t have time for a full class. The focus on breathing really helps me get back in tune with my body’s needs and helps set me up to make good choices.
Cutting out the processed foods is always the best bet to get my body back to ‘normal’. Also, the uber rehydration!
I love your suggestion of adding in 15 minutes of activity!
Such good tips! I love posts like this 🙂 I totally agree with the water thing & trying to eat as whole and natural as possible. Something I find that really helps me is to select a few recipes or even do a full-blown meal plan for the week. Seeing the healthy eats in front of me makes me feel more calm about getting on track and it forces me to go to the grocery store to stock up on healthy foods. I also usually need a little bit of “me” time after a vacation and so I’ll try not to schedule social dates with friends or family for at least a day or two after returning!
Hi! I’ve been reading your blog for a bit now after I came across it from reading Gretchen’s blog. I think these are awesome tips. The keeping hydrated and eating more natural have been lifesavers for myself during my last 3 vacations, which one was recently to LA! I loved that LA offered so many great places for running and hiking.
5 Simple yet very effective tips! I travel for work a lot so usually face the demons when coming back from a trip even if I’ve been “on track”; traveling is exhausting. Extra water & starting the day with a great sweat session & refueling with a green smoothie. Also, I usually cut out any booze for a few days; sad; but effective! Sounds like your trip was fun 🙂
Water, water, water!
I love how you integrate activity into your travels!
I always struggle with getting my workouts done during my travels. I love the tips!
Water and less processed foods totally help me feel better after a weekend/week away from home! I don’t normally eat processed foods on “normal” routine days, so if I just go back to those habits, I tend to feel better way quickly!