Backpacker Workouts To-Go

May 31, 2022 Devin Scott

STRENGTH AND CARDIO FITNESS FOR TRAVELING AROUND THE WORLD

When slow traveling, it’s important to treat travel more as a lifestyle than as a vacation. This means incorporating your regular self-care routine into your days, eating well, getting plenty of sleep, and making sure you slow down and rest from time to time. For me, daily fitness was essential in maintaining both my physical and mental health back in the United States. On the road, I walk over ten miles a day, so in some ways I don’t have to worry about my activity level; however, I still need some high-intensity and strength work to keep me feeling at my best. To be able to incorporate this into my road life, I made space in my bag for three pieces of a fitness equipment - a knee pad, sliders, and a set of resistance bands. I aim to do a 20-40 minute HIIT workout 3 or 4 times a week that uses only these on the go accessories. I also count long hikes as workouts as well, so where you see gaps, I may have gone for a hike.

Each time I write up my workout, I’m going to load it to this page so that other backpackers who value fitness can access a repository of workouts to-go for their slow travel. Remember to do a warm-up and cool-down each time; I run one mile first, do some dynamic stretching, and end with five minutes of yoga. The early files describe the workout types; the later ones just name them. The basic formats are below. I hope they’re valuable for you!

Tabata Circuit: Do each exercise for 40 seconds, then rest for 20, and move on to the next exercise. Repeat the circuit for the time indicated.
Decreasing Reps Countdown: For the first round, do each of the exercises for the first number of reps indicated (usually 21). Then, on the second round, drop to the next number (usually 19) and do each exercise for that number of reps. Repeat this until you reach the last / smallest number (usually 5).
AMRAP (As Many Reps as Possible): Do as many rounds of the exercises as you can in the time indicated.
EMOM (Every Minute on the Minute): Do the exercises indicated then rest until the end of the minute and repeat. Each exercise has a range. I usually aim to pick a rep count within the range that takes me 45 - 50 seconds.
Accumulator: This is a building ladder. Do the first exercise for 20 seconds, then rest 20 seconds. Then do the first exercise for 20 seconds and the second exercise for 20 seconds, and then rest for 20 seconds. Then the first three exercises for 20 seconds each, and rest for 20 seconds. Repeat this until you do all five for 20 seconds, rest for 20 seconds, and then reverse it (so do all five starting with the fifth, then four starting with the fifth and dropping the first . .. until you only do the fifth for 20 seconds).