Lifetiquing

One of the great advantages of being a vidiot (slang for those of us who are workout video addicts) over a gym rat is great independence and flexibility to workout while traveling. As an advanced exerciser, I have pretty stringent criteria for what constitutes an acceptable travel workout, though. Read on for recommendations!

I've always loved traveling, but I used to dread it at the same time. How was I going to get my workout fix? What if I lost conditioning? The idea of heading home a week or two later and having to work my way back up to my current workouts was horrifying. Well, I've relaxed to some extent now, and I don't work out as often when I'm traveling as I do when I'm at home, but I definitely work out as hard. And, I do so all in the comfort of my room, needing only a laptop and occasionally resistance bands.

I'll be heading on a weeklong trip soon, and here's what I'll be taking with me:

Lalofit 2: ingenious circuit training workout with yoga-esque strength exercises and short cardio intervals. Be ready to do some pushups- that's the crowning feature of this DVD. When traveling, I use two 2 liter bottles of soda as my weights (2 liters of fluid = about 4.5 lbs). I could go heavier than that, but the pushup variations make this workout quite challenging anyway. It's about 45 minutes long and builds steadily in intensity. I am almost always sore the day after I do this.

Cathe Friedrich- Cardio Core Circuit: this little gem is one of my best discoveries of the year. I love high-intensity interval training because it's so efficient and not boring, and this one is one of the best HiiT workouts I've ever done. It's not classic HiiT in the 40/20 or 30/30 sense, but you do circuits of 3 very challenging, athletic moves, followed by a good core exercise. There's very little repetition in this workout, and it's ultra time-compact, coming in at 33 minutes plus warmup and cooldown. And no equipment needed other than a towel or two for the floorwork!

Insanity: if you've been keeping up with my Insanity blog, you know I'm a devout follower at the moment.  With the exception of one workout, they're all equipment-free, very time compact, and incredibly intense. One of my favorite features is the music-free option, so while on the road and away from my living room (where I can blast my music without fear), I'll be bringing an MP3 player with me so I can listen to pounding music via headphones while doing the workout. That nifty little timer + exercise ticker on the bottom of the screen will definitely help.

Physique 57: a comprehensive barre workout that has pacing and exercises very similar to a live class.  It is challenging and brings me to the point of shouting curses at the instructor, but it still gives me that wonderful sense of well being afterwards that I find I get from a good barre workout.

The Bar Method- Change Your Body: slightly slower paced than Physique 57, but the excellent cuing and stretching more than make up for it, and it still produces an agonizing burn as you work deep into your muscles. On vacation, all you need is a dining room chair.

Advanced Travel Rotation 1, for a weeklong trip:

• Day 1: Lalofit 2 (+ The Bar Method, if time allows)
• Day 2: Insanity or Cardio Core Circuit
• Day 3: Physique 57
• Day 4: Insanity or Cardio Core Circuit
• Day 5: Lalofit 2 (+ The Bar Method, if time allows)
• Day 6: Insanity or Cardio Core Circuit
• Day 7: Rest

Above image (c) Kossy and obtained via a Creative Commons License: http://www.flickr.com/photos/kossy/354401232/sizes/s/#cc_license.