Guest published piece by Gloria Martinez of WomenLed.org

“WomenLed.org aims to celebrate women’s achievements in the workplace and is dedicated to increasing the number of women-led corporations, organizations, and small businesses by educating others about women-led achievements.”

Traveling can be exciting, but it can also disrupt our routines and impact our health. Whether you're jet-setting for business or pleasure, staying healthy on the road is vital. Long flights, unhealthy food options, and a lack of exercise can all take a toll on our bodies. But with some planning and preparation, you can maintain your health and well-being while traveling. By keeping a few practical tips from Project Passport in mind, you can take steps to ensure that you never neglect healthy behaviors even when long days of traveling take their toll.

Keep an Exercise Routine

When your traveling finds you frequently sitting on a plane, train, or in your own car, you can quickly develop a sedentary lifestyle. Traveling by any mode of transportation also requires a certain amount of constant awareness, often leading to exhaustion by the time you reach your destination. These factors all come together to result in poor physical fitness.

Resolving walking to meetings and sightseeing destinations is one way to get some extra movement into your day. You can also stay at hotels with fitness facilities, or even start a simple bodyweight exercise program that you can easily complete in any hotel room.

Sleep Well and Eat Well

It can be easy to lose track of even the most basic self-care and physiological needs when traveling. You might start to feel that there are just not enough hours in the day, meaning that your sleep schedule is liable to be the first thing to suffer. The experts at the Sleep Foundation recommend that most adults should get 7–9 hours of restful sleep each night, something that you should strive for even during busy trips.

Frequent travelers also tend to suffer from a lack of proper nutrition. Visiting local food markets is a great way to find fresh and healthy options, and you can go the extra mile by cooking for yourself whenever reasonably possible.

Use Technology to the Fullest

There are many tech solutions to help you stay safe and healthy during your travels. Try using apps to keep yourself accountable for your diet, exercise, and other self-care goals. You can also set up weather alerts to make sure you never find yourself driving through unsafe conditions while on the road.

You should also learn how to use automation to handle certain tasks for you so that you can take your mind off work when you need a break. For example, you can schedule social media posts ahead of time or set automatic responses in your email and other chat platforms to let colleagues know that you're "out of the office."

Finding some free PDF tools can also help you to make sure that you have essential documents with you at all times. While this is most helpful if you are traveling for work, leisure travelers can keep copies of their travel documents, including a passport, credit card information, and medical records in case of problems. Digitize these files before you leave and store them on the cloud.

Because you’re often meeting new people while traveling, it’s a good idea to have several business cards handy. If you lack cards at present, give this tool a look. It’s a digital design interface that allows you to create attractive custom card designs in minutes. With a good card design, leaving a positive impression is easy.

Stay Active and Have Fun

Maintaining an active lifestyle while traveling can be a challenge, but it is essential to keep your body and mind in top shape. There are plenty of ways to incorporate physical activity into your travel plans, whether it's taking a scenic hike, renting bicycles to explore your surroundings, or participating in local fitness classes. Staying active not only helps combat jet lag and travel fatigue but also allows you to experience your destination in a more immersive way. 

Traveling for work is a dream for people who see it as a way of getting paid to visit new and exciting places. While the reality might be less romantic than the fantasies, that doesn't have to affect the opportunities available to you. When visiting a new city for work, consider how you can adapt your schedule to make time for experiencing the local recreation. 

Find Your Personal Balance

Pursuing a career as a traveling professional can be thoroughly fulfilling, but it can be challenging to balance your personal needs with the demands of the job. Experiment with what works best for you, from locating accommodations with fitness opportunities nearby to setting your “away” settings and taking self-care breaks. When you find your own way of striking that balance, you will get the best of both worlds no matter where you go.

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Project Passport is a proactive mental wellness company that aims to bring mental wellness retreats, workshops and other services to company teams. We also help individuals create joy in their lives every step of the way. To learn more about our company retreats and services, click here. Our travel retreats will resume in the future as the world reopens.