Everyone loves to feel confident and look good on vacation! I mean, I would be lying to myself and you all if I said vacation didn’t inspire me to get my booty to the gym! 

Here’s how I prep my mind and body for vacay:

Let’s get straight to the point and start with my workout routine.

I work out on a normal week 4-5 times a week already, without vacay mode in sight. However, a majority of those workouts are either a hot yoga session, a fitness class or a hike…something that keeps me accountable to get to the gym, ya know? When I have a vacation in sight, I push my workouts a little harder. I have the motivation to get to the gym, so I don’t take as many fitness classes and instead hit the gym floor to lift weights. More strength workouts, less cardio / yoga fitness classes. Gotta make those muscles pop!

Moving on to my gut:

I went through a huge flare up about three weeks before my vacation. I’m not going to lie… it scared the shit out of me. Especially knowing that my gut tends to feel worse when traveling, I wanted to get it somewhat under control before I made things worse by traveling. Here’s what I did… I cut out veggies, starchy carbs, and fruit from my diet during the flare. This wasn’t a long-term thing, but the results worked for the long term. All I ate was meat, eggs, ginger and almond butter. So, my biggest advice when preparing your gut for a trip is to reduce the inflammation. This may mean a totally different diet than mine, but listen to your body and see what works and what doesn’t work for you.

And then there was diet:

I limit the amount of times I go out to eat. Yeah… no more doordash or postmates. This makes a HUGE difference even if you’re eating out at “healthy” restaurants. You just eat more when you eat out. For me, I crave more foods when I eat out. Right before a trip, I also limit the amount of sweets I eat. Unfortunately, that means Pressed Juicery freezes, too! Also, alcohol. I don’t drink a lot to begin with, but before a trip I’m pretty conscious about my alcohol consumption only because my hangovers are the WORST. Nothing worse on your mental health than a headache, mixed with being lazy and useless.

Finishing off with self-care:

You have to reward yourself for working extra hard on yourself. It’s super important to love yourself in the midst of challenging yourself. If you don’t, it can lead to burn out or falling into a constant state of unworthiness. This is what my self-care looks like: beach walks, meditation, praying, facials, painting my nails, hanging out with friends and family, taking time to be alone without technology, reading a book, writing, or just simply watching reality television. Yup, I said it… I’m reality show junkie. And of course, yoga. I still do yoga. Stretching really helps my body release tension.

Oh! And then of course, beauty!

A spray tan is an absolute must before I travel. It just lifts and tightens everything up! I get my tan the night before I leave and then in the morning, I shower right before I head off to the airport. That way everything is fresh and ready to go. 

Thank god for balance, right?! Now, when I’m on vacation things are different. I drink, I eat all of the healthy and not so healthy foods, I try to stay active but don’t get upset if it doesn’t happen, and I totally live in the moment.

I hope this helps you prepare your body, soul and mind for your next trip! It’s nice to feel good about yourself when going on vacation!