If you’re looking to form long-lasting fitness habits that will support your health over the coming years, then any opportunity to exercise might seem like an opportunity worth taking. For some, this might even mean choosing an active holiday over a more sedate, relaxing one.
Let’s take a look at some of the key benefits of a fitness-oriented vacation.
Physical Health Benefits
To begin with, if you’re exercising, then you’re improving your fitness. This will lower your risk of health problems, allow you to lose weight, and make you feel better about yourself and your body.
In some cases, an active holiday might inspire a love of a particular form of exercise that you can take home with you. You might even get insights and instructions that will allow you to cycle, jog, hike, or practice yoga while you’re at home.
For many vacationers, cycling is a great choice, since it might allow you to tour a particular part of the world, while getting plenty of exercise in the process. But the same might be said of a long hike through nature, or a trail-running habit. What matters is that you can build enthusiasm for your chosen pastime, and sustain that enthusiasm in the years to come.
Mental Well-being and Stress Reduction
Physical exercise isn’t just good for your body. It’s also good for your mind, especially if it’s being pursued outdoors. Push your heart rate up sufficiently, and you’ll stimulate the release of feel-good hormones called endorphins.
Since the human brain is adapted to crave outdoor green space, you’ll also tend to get mental health benefits from spending time on mountainsides, in woodland, and beside rivers. This is a particular benefit of gravel cycling trips, which see participants zip along gravel paths, rather than tarmac-based roads.
Long-term Lifestyle Benefits
Of course, spending just a week or two pursuing a particular form of exercise might not be enough to tip the balance of your fitness in the long term. You might come back home feeling slightly exhausted, and having shed a few pounds – but if you don’t stick with the habit, your body is likely to revert to its previous state.
But if you choose a fitness vacation that inspires you to want more from your given choice of exercise, then you might be motivated to form a lasting habit when you’re back home. You might even choose a vacation that’s designed to do this. A boot camp experience, for example, might give you the push you need to kick-start your fitness journey. Then, when you’re back home, you’ll know exactly what to do in order to sustain a new health-conscious lifestyle.
