Staying Fit On The Road
Are you sitting behind the wheel of your motorhome, cruising along mile after mile?
With all the comforts of home at arm's reach, driving cross country is somewhat similar to being a couch potato surfing channels on your widescreen TV. Not exactly up to par when it comes to cardiovascular exercise.
Modern medicine recommends at least 30 minutes a day 3 times a week as a minimum amount of exercise to keep you healthy. That is exercise that raises your pulse rate -- which indicates that it’s actually doing you some good. I’m as guilty as anyone about not following that guideline very closely.
With that in mind, what can RVers do to maintain some level of physical activity that will help keep them healthy and, in turn, give them the ability to remain active for many years?
Walk It Off
The most obvious and generally considered one of the best ways to maintain good health is to simply walk.
A 30-minute brisk walk around the campground, through a shopping mall, or while visiting an interesting stop along your journey will get your blood moving and help keep your metabolism up.
The Spin Cycle
Many RVers take bicycles along with them -- often, foldable bikes.
Once you've parked the RV, you’ll need some form of transportation to get around. Pedaling over to the campground office, or the pool, even a ride to the supermarket down the road are all excellent opportunities to get a little exercise.
A number of years ago, cycling 10 miles a day allowed me to drop 30 lbs and get back in great shape in a couple months. Exercise beats dieting every time when it comes to weight loss. Besides, who wants to eat nothing but lettuce? I like good food too much to give it up.
Hiking Long Distances
Hiking is another good way to stay in shape. It’s also a great way to see some wonderful scenery along the way.
I’ve hiked the trail around Devil’s Tower in Wyoming (an easy trail about a mile in length) and the paved trail around Mackinac Island in the northwest corner of Lake Huron. Both trails are beautiful easy hikes.
Row, Row, Row Your Boat
Boats can provide some enjoyable exercise.
Rowing an open boat, canoeing, or kayaking are all great ways to enjoy the water.
There is no better adventure than a canoe trip through the Boundary Waters Canoe Area Wilderness with portages, campfires, and backpacking. You may even run into a moose or a bear, as this is their turf.
How To Workout Inside Your RV
But what if getting intimate with nature isn’t really your thing? The mosquitoes can be quite bothersome. Maybe your sweltering through a hot southern summer and the idea of sun stroke doesn’t sound like your idea of a good time.
Good news: there is a way to take your exercise routine inside your RV.
Strapping your stationary exercise cycle or treadmill to the back bumper of your RV won’t be necessary. These days, you can get the same effect using computer technology. With a Wii video game and your onboard TV, you can simulate a number of activities that will give your 30-minute exercise routine a completely new spin.
For example, check out the Wii Fit Experiment:
In the end, the key to being faithful to any exercise routine is to find enjoyable activities that just happen to employ movement.
Doing exercise just for the sake of exercise is about as much fun as standing in place and doing jumping jacks. You won’t stick with that for very long. If you're doing something that you enjoy doing, it will lose the “exercise” label and become an “activity”... much better.
No matter how bizarre others may think your fitness routine may be, it is important to make sure that you at least have one.