Embracing Fitness Routines and Travel: Finding Balance and Joy in the Journey

Ah, summer! Warmer days, time to unwind, and long-awaited travel plans. The possibilities feel endless! So why does this warm freedom sometimes make us feel even more stressed than usual? Often, vacation requires us to step outside of our daily routine, our familiar hustle, and our everyday habits that give us our sense of comfort. When we are stripped away from our patterns, even if it just so happens to be in a tropical climate, it can leave us feeling powerless and lacking the control and order we often cling to. Let’s shift the travel narrative so we can spend less time worrying (unless it’s about which SPF brand will give us the best all-day coverage).

All that you learn and cultivate in any ness class extends far beyond the physical, and now is a great way to put your mental strength to the test. When the travel anxieties do creep in, combat them with presence. Make the most of your trip by experiencing each moment in its entirety. Just like in class, when you start thinking too far ahead, or you zone out and lose focus, you often stumble or trip up in the choreography. Approach your vacation with this same mindset; be where you are right now. This hyper-focus will leave you so actively present, so invested in each fleeting moment, you won’t have the time or space to enter the anxiety spiral of either the past or the future.

And in regards to the physical aspect, I know a lot of us truly feel better, overall, in our mind, body, and soul, after moving. Movement is wonderful because it allows us to discover, connect, and fully tap into all aspects of ourselves. It enables us to approach the rest of our day and tasks with increased clarity and ease. Remember your intention, your why, the reason why you move: to feel good, to honor, to support. Movement is joy, so remind yourself of that even when you’re away from your routine and your workouts look different. Movement is still joy.

Just because the length, equipment, or intensity varies, does not discredit or cancel out your intention. Get out of your own way! Just because you only had 10 minutes in the morning to hit your ness digital free arms focus video doesn’t mean your workout didn’t count. Just because you felt stiff from a long flight and only craved a juicy ness stretch doesn’t mean you’re lazy. Just because you don’t have your trampoline and you’re not PDL (#drip) does not have any direct reflection on your worth. You move to feel good, and until these self-sabotaging thoughts crept in, that’s exactly what you were doing.

The laughs and inside jokes shared with your besties on that long walk down to the boardwalk, the incredible pool-side breakfast buffet by the ocean, the memories made exploring and living and indulging in all things you don’t regularly do in your day-to-day. That’s what you want to remember when you think about your vacation; not the fact that you were so anxious and determined to stay on track that you spent more time in your hotel gym than you did actually experiencing your life.

Fitness is a perpetual journey; there is no finish line, no ending. Goals and priorities shift, and life can get messy and spontaneous. Remember that a few weeks here and there will not take away from all of the beautiful progress that you continue to make. On vacation, one of the best things you can do for your full multifaceted being is to prioritize living. Move when you want to, don’t when you don’t. Listen to yourself because your future self will thank you,