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5 Smart Tips to Staying Fit and Healthy While on Vacation

May 26, 2021 By Justin Weinger Leave a Comment

Vacation should be a time of sampling local foods, exploring new destinations, and enjoying every moment away from the daily grind of work or responsibilities. With all this merry-making, it can be way too easy to sabotage your health. The last thing you want upon returning home from vacation is to feel like a slug due to overindulgence during your vacay. Here are a few simple tips to staying fit and feeling fine on your vacation while still having fun.

Healthy Flying: Too often, our health is most threatened the minute we step foot in an airport. Fatty fast foods, drying canned air, stressful environments, and a slew of germs crawling all over the place make airports and airplanes a death trap to our health. Luckily, there are steps you can take to thwart the unhealthy effects of airplane travel. For example, pack your own healthy lunch or snacks before heading off to the airport. This will keep you satisfied, save you money and help you resist the grossly unhealthy food often found in airports and on airplanes. Remember to drink plenty of water to keep you hydrated too. Doing this will help your body stay nourished while exposed to the recycled air piped in through airplanes and throughout airports. Also, consider performing deep breathing exercises and/ or meditation to keep your stress levels down while babies are crying and passengers are clanging all around. Breathing deeply and meditating is especially helpful if traveling by air stresses you out. Lastly, keep hand sanitizers and antibacterial wipes at the ready. Wipe down your plane seat before getting situated. Use your hand sanitizer often so you can avoid lingering germs left behind by other travelers.

Save Your Skin: Whether by plane, train, or automobile, travel can take a toll on your healthy glow.  As mentioned, it’s vital to keep hydrated before, during, and after your travel.  Drinking plenty of water while enjoying your vacation will keep your skin hydrated and looking great. If you’re vacationing to sunny destinations, be sure to apply sunscreen to avoid burns (or worse, certain skin cancers). Travel often kicks up a lot of dirt and grime so be sure to continue your clean skincare routine by washing your face well. This will help prevent dirt and oil buildup so you can avoid breakouts or blemishes while showing your best face for selfies on your vacation.

Eat Smart: Sticking to healthy eating choices while traveling is probably the number one challenge everyone faces while on vacation. Local delicacies are so delicious and tempting! Thankfully, you can still sample street foods, nosh on exotic edibles, and nibble on bodacious bites. The trick is moderation. Sample everything, but do so in small portions. Depending upon where you travel, you can healthily experience the best foods any region has to offer. More and more, restaurateurs are offering smarter, healthier choices to diners that boast bold flavors within their culture.  For example, try alternatives like vegetarian soft tacos instead of deep-fried smothered pork chimichangas.  It’s okay to splurge, but it’s also easy to make mindful compromises so your diet (and your waistline) doesn’t suffer from vacation indulgences.

Sleep Well: This is perhaps one of the most overlooked aspects of staying fit and healthy while on vacation. Too often we forget that we are sleeping in foreign beds, not anticipating odd noises in the night, or maybe even partying too much which can keep us from getting enough quality shut-eye.  That’s why certain items such as noise-canceling earbuds or soothing eye masks are travel essentials for decent sleep while traveling. Also, think about drinking a bit less alcohol and more water. This will help you hit the pillow and prepare for a better night’s sleep.  Lastly, avoid eating big meals before bedtime.  This often wreaks havoc on any attempt to sleep soundly.

Move Your Body:  When enjoying vacation, exercise is probably the last thing on your mind. That’s understandable. This should be a time to enjoy and have fun. However, you don’t have to do a three-mile run or drop and do 100 pushups to maintain your health while traveling.  Doing a few simple stretches in the morning or a few yoga moves every day goes a long way to keeping you fit.  Better yet, think about incorporating physical activities that are region-specific. For example, consider going horseback riding if you’re visiting Texas or hiking while visiting the Grand Canyon.  At the very least, work in some walking or biking time while touring your vacation destination. Strolling through expansive marketplaces or cycling on charming bike paths is a brilliant way to soak in the scenery while staying fit and healthy on your vacation.

Wherever your destination for vacation and whatever you find yourself doing, these tips will help you retain your health while still enabling you to enjoy yourself. Happy (and healthy) travels to you!

Filed Under: Travel

Reasons To Continue Family Outings and Vacations While Paying Down Debt

December 16, 2019 By MelissaB Leave a Comment

If you listen to Dave Ramsey, you may have heard his admonishment that you should put all extras and luxuries in your life on hold until your debt is paid off.  “Live like no one else so later you can live like no one else” is his mantra.  I would agree with him if you can pay off your debt in a year or less.  However, I disagree with him if it will take you several years to pay down your debt.  There are many reasons to continue family outings and vacations while paying down debt.

Your Children Are Growing

My husband and I dug ourselves out of consumer debt about five years ago.  Then, three years ago when one of our children started suddenly having medical and behavioral issues, we found ourselves back in debt thanks to doctor and psychiatrist visits.  There were a good 18 months where we were seeing specialists and searching for answers, and we went back into consumer debt.  There is also still student loan debt we’re working on.

We stopped taking any vacations and going on family outings because we thought that all of our money should go on our debt.  We did this for about two years, and then we realized that our kids are growing up.  Our teenager will soon be an adult and out of the house.  We only get this time with our kids once!

Reasons to Continue Family Outings and Vacations When Paying Down Debt
Photo by Mika Baumeister on Unsplash

Of course, we do our best to save money on family outings, but spending time with our children is now more of a priority, even if we still have debt.

Your Family Is Aging

Our families live far from where we do, so when we started focusing heavily on paying down our debt, we stopped traveling.  We went 3.5 years without seeing my extended family.  During that time, one uncle died and another got lung cancer.  My uncles and aunts are all in their 70s and 80s now.  I know there won’t be many times left when we can visit with them.

Photo by Sven Brandsma on Unsplash

This fall, my daughters and I made the 2,000 mile trek to visit my extended family, doing what we could to save money.  We drove instead of flying; we packed our own food on the trip so we wouldn’t have to eat out; and we stayed at hotels where we could save 20% or more.  I’m very glad we made the trip, and we plan to do it again next year.

You Are Creating Memories

As I get older and see my extended family age and my children grow up, I see the importance of making memories with those I love.

I belong to several financial groups on Facebook, and recently on one, a man posted that for the last four years, even though he had debt, he and his family made the decision to take a vacation once a year.  They always included the man’s mother.  She passed away this Thanksgiving.  He wrote that he’s so glad he took the time to vacation with his family and his mother.  He’ll always have those memories, even if it will take him about a year longer to pay down his debt.

Of course, you should pay off your debt as quickly as possible to improve your finances.  However, keep in mind that nothing is guaranteed in life.  There are very good reasons to continue family outings and vacations when paying down debt.

MelissaB
MelissaB

Melissa is a writer and virtual assistant. She earned her Master’s from Southern Illinois University, and her Bachelor’s in English from the University of Michigan. When she’s not working, you can find her homeschooling her kids, reading a good book, or cooking. She resides in Arizona where she dislikes the summer heat but loves the natural beauty of the area.

www.momsplans.com/

Filed Under: Children, Debt Reduction, Married Money, Travel

4 Alternative Spring Break Vacation Options

March 5, 2017 By MelissaB 1 Comment

Spring is right around the corner, and for many, that means spring break.  However, if you are a college student or you have a child who is one, know that spring break for many kids doesn’t mean traipsing off to a beach location to spend the week drinking and partying.  For many others, spring break can be a time to help others.

The best of both worlds is traveling to new locations AND helping others.  There are plenty of spring break options to let you do just that, and the opportunities aren’t just for college students.

While there are many reputable companies that you can choose from, these are a few to get you started.

International Spring Break Options

Alternative spring break vacation
Original img: Kristin Klein on Flickr

GoVoluntouring.  This company lets you choose your volunteer opportunity based on age, the amount you can spend, duration, and what attractions and countries interest you.  GoVoluntouring has projects in many, many different countries from Croatia to Fiji to Iceland, just to name a few, and has opportunities from teaching abroad to environmental programs to wildlife programs.

Earthwatch Institute.  Earthwatch Institute’s focus is on environmental trips including climate change, ocean health, and wildlife expeditions.  They have trips available in every continent.  Another nice feature of Earthwatch is that if you spread the news about the company via social media and other avenues, you can receive a discount on your own travel.  Just sign up to be an Earthwatch Ambassador to take advantage of this program.

National Spring Break Options

American Hiking Association.  If you’d like to volunteer without getting a passport, you might consider the American Hiking Association’s opportunities to travel within the U.S. and volunteer.  You can search by the state you’re interested in traveling to.  Then, you’ll see how difficult the volunteer opportunity is, ranging from Easy to Very Strenuous, with three additional grades in between.  A moderate project (one step up from easy) might be performing trail maintenance at Fort Pickens in Florida.  A very strenuous project might be one that requires 6 to 10 miles of hiking a day in addition to trail clearing and maintenance including removing dead trees and repairing or installing turnpikes on the trails.

If you want to serve here, be aware that each trip generally only has 6 to 13 participants, so space is limited.  They currently still have openings in their program.

The United Way.  The most cost-effective alternative spring break program is with the United Way.  For a cost of approximately $275 to $395, you’ll have the chance to volunteer for a week and work on projects such as building houses, maintaining gardens, and assisting youth.

Of course, you don’t have to go with one of these companies.  There are likely plenty of opportunities to volunteer in your own community or to take a trip to a foreign country to help others through your church.

If you’re going to spend money on a spring break getaway, why not also do good while you’re there?  You’ll likely experience the country and its people more than if you just sat on a beach as a tourist watching the sunset.

Have you ever taken a volunteer vacation?  If so, where did you go and what did you do?  If not, would you consider taking one?

MelissaB
MelissaB

Melissa is a writer and virtual assistant. She earned her Master’s from Southern Illinois University, and her Bachelor’s in English from the University of Michigan. When she’s not working, you can find her homeschooling her kids, reading a good book, or cooking. She resides in Arizona where she dislikes the summer heat but loves the natural beauty of the area.

www.momsplans.com/

Filed Under: Travel Tagged With: Spring Break, travel, vacation

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