Category Archives: RoadWarrior

Family, Fitness, My Favorite Things, RoadWarrior, Travel

The Family Vacation

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There is nothing more rewarding about being on the road than being able to bring your family with you.  A couple of weeks ago it was spring break in Texas and we decided this year we would make the most of all of those miles & points.

Radio City Music Hall

Over seven days my family and I took planes, trains, UBERs, Metros, subways and did a lot of walking through both Washington, D.C. and NYC.  There is also no better way to see how neurotic you have become about traveling than by traveling with a group of people who don’t travel every week.  Evidently I travel a bit “differently”.

I am a creature of habit

There is nowhere this is more apparent than in a hotel room.  I am the kind of traveler who unpacks the same way, as soon as I get in the hotel room, EVERY TIME!!  I do exactly the opposite as soon as I wake up on the last day of my residency at said hotel.  To say that my 13 and 15 year old do not follow the same dedication to order would be unwarranted to say the least.  We were lucky just to find all of their clothes let alone actually have any of them actually reside in a drawer, on a hanger or even in the suitcase that brought them to the destination.  Makes you wonder what the lost and found at a Disney resort must look like!!

Working out while traveling with family is hard!!

And this is from someone whose spouse is dedicated to fitness and health as well.  Over the course of the 7 days, I got a grand total of one real workout in (granted, we did average walking over 5 miles a day in these wonderful cities).  When I am on the road alone, I have no problem working out late at night or delaying dinner until after a run.  It is a must attend event for me, I have recently even found a way to make this happen on The Dreaded Day Trip but for some strange reason, my family actually likes to eat on a regular schedule.  Eating at a normal meal time?  Huh, who would have figured?  Might have to try that sometime.

When traveling with the family, throw the rules out the window

I have a few rules around when I travel.  They are the core of my routine when it comes to staying fit while on the road and you can read all about it here .  With the exception of ‘See Fruit – Eat Fruit’, I gladly broke every single rule I have made for myself on this trip.  One thing I realized is that the rules are selfish when you are traveling with family.  They are (purposefully) self-centered because when you are on the road alone or for work, you can afford to be self-centered.  In fact I can make a strong argument that YOU SHOULD BE SELF CENTERED ON THESE TRIPS!!  When you are on the road with family though, it is time to be others-centered.  We had a couple of great meals that normally would not be RoadWarriorFit approved.  New York pizza slices, sandwiches from chains you can have anywhere, even burgers and fries at The Harlem Shake.  For example, let your child drink the melted ice cream and caramel sauce with a straw!!

Legal Seafood

Some rules are universal

I am fortunate that my boys are finally of an age where they actually will trust me when I say ‘Trust Me – you will want to try this’.  We had several great meals on this trip that we could not have had at home (New York City pizza, late night at The Harlem Shake, lobster rolls at Luke’s Lobster in DC) but the one that won hands down was brunch at The Red Rooster in Harlem

Red Rooster

OH MY GOD…you have to try this place.  Martin Samuelson has completely outdone himself with this new Harlem mainstay.  My point here though is not to give you a glowing restaurant recommendation but rather that the experience was the important part.  I got to share a phenomenal brunch with the most important people in my life.  It was an experience we could not have had at home (and the chocolate French Toast is to die for).

The biggest lesson learned on the trip? 

Traveling with others is better than traveling alone.  Even though I was not able to enter or exit a room in less than 2 minutes or get a work out in every day or avoided all fried food, the experiences and memories we were able to develop as a family were worth it all.  I saw my boys marvel at the NYC skyline, I saw them humbled by the National Mall and astonished at the atrocities of the Holocaust.

Yeah, it was a good trip.  Now it is back to the grind and following a bunch of rules.  See you on the road.

Diet, Fitness, RoadWarrior, Travel

The Dreaded Day Trip

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I have a love/hate relationship with the ‘Day Trip’.  I love the way they look on the calendar.  Morning flight, midday meeting, return flight the same day and finally sleeping in my own bed, all within a single day.  Heck, I can even tell my lovely wife that I will be “home that day”

The problem is I do not live my life on paper

As I write this, I am sitting on the first flight out to Chicago.  I will also be on one of the evening flights back in to Dallas tonight.  Nearly 6 hours of travel time for a 4 hour meeting, of which I am only leading an hour of.  It is days like this that make me want to banish the ‘Day Trip’ from my calendar forever, or at least severely restricting the geographies I am willing to schedule these life sucking journeys to.

You have to have a strategy in place to stay RoadWarrior fit!!

There are so many pitfalls that the Day Trip puts in your path from a health and fitness perspective.  They really are just evil.  Let’s take a look at them and how to avoid them.

Disturbed Sleep Schedule:

For me at least, a Day Trip involves a very early flight (today’s departure time was 6:43 AM) and a late return (I am landing at 10:00 PM).  That meant I was up at 4:30 and will not be heading to bed until probably around midnight assuming that there are no delays heading home.  That makes for a very long day and more importantly, for very little sleep.  There are thousands of studies that show the importance of sleep to both physical and mental health.  I rarely get my full allotment of sleep before or after a day trip.

Coping Strategy – Get to bed early the night before

I know you saw that one coming and to be truthful, I suck at this one but it is a must.  You know you are not going to sleep on the plane so make sure you get your Z’s in the night before.  Need help making this happen, click here

Lack of Exercise:

I truly wish I was the type of person who got up early in the morning and exercised but alas, I am not.  The only times I work out in the morning is when I either have a late afternoon flight or the weekend (and even then we are not talking about early mornings).  Packing so much travel time in one day often means I am breaking the first rule of being RoadWarrior fit:

Rule #1: Do something, ANYTHING, everyday!!

When you are already scheduled to wake up at 4:30 it is really hard to set that alarm and stick to it another 30-60 minutes earlier.  3:30 wake-up call just to get an exercise session in?  C’mon, not happening.

Coping Strategy – Plan for the down time

There are times I have been able to work out on a day trip.  I have been known to walk airports for the hour before my flight.  I know which airlines clubs have fitness facilities in them and this trip I even packed my workout clothes and shoes to get a workout in at the Hilton in O’Hare (great gym that is accessible from the terminal) but in over a decade of travel, THIS IS THE FIRST TIME I HAVE DONE THAT!!

hilton gym1

If you know you have a Day Trip in a particular week, plan to exercise around it.  None of us can or should do a true workout every day.  Your body needs down time to recover so use these days wisely.  Get a great workout in the day before (it will help you sleep also) and make sure you get one the next day.

Crazy Diet:

At 5:00 in the morning, I am not going to be breaking out the cookware to make the healthiest of breakfasts so I am usually grabbing something to go.  Now I am talking fruit and shakes, not Poptarts so let’s not get too crazy.  However that is usually followed up with a ‘working lunch’ (read: local sandwich shop or my favorite, Pizza) and a dinner at the airport.  Most of the time, this is breaking my last rule for staying RoadWarrior fit:

Rule #5:  Never eat somewhere that you could at home!!

In other words, I try and avoid the chains as they are about easily replicated food and very rarely about the quality nutrition we should be looking for.  That is not very easy to do when you are dining at the airport.  So very often I end up having a shake for breakfast, a protein bar for lunch (especially if I am presenting – it is really hard to present and eat at the same time) and another protein bar at dinner.  That may sound like the next fad diet but I can assure you, it is not good for you in the long run.

Coping Strategy – Get a good breakfast

You can have a great breakfast without waking the entire house up.  Prep your food the night before so it is ready to go in the morning.  I love breakfast tacos and these heat up in the microwave very easily.  Pair an English muffin smeared with Peanut Butter to a bowl of berries and greek yogurt.  You get the point but make sure this one meal is complete and at least you know you are starting the day well.

Sedentarism:

Yes, I just made that word up but take today as an example.  Between the car rides to and from the airports, two plane rides and the meeting with the client, I am sure I will be sitting for at least 12 hours today.  12 HOURS!!!  That is how you get DVT people, no really, it is.

Coping Strategy – Move every chance you get.

Pretty self explanatory.

It is Just Rude:

Picture for a moment my wife’s version of these trips.  She is awakened at 4:30 AM by me trouncing around the house getting ready to leave, the dogs waking up and being active with me.  She is then left to fend for herself with the boys all day including getting them ready and off to school, playing chauffer for various events, making and cleaning dinner, monitoring homework and being disciplinarian when needed.  Then at the end of the day, having me reenter life like the conquering hero right before (or sometimes well after) everyone heads off to bed.  Sounds like a great day, right?  Wrong.

Now, I understand the desire of parents of younger kids to be home in time to tuck their kids in to bed.  That also relieves some of the stress on your spouse if you can handle that portion of the day but my kids are teenagers.  I can assure you that they have NO DESIRE to have me tuck them in at night and the stressful part of the day is not bed time.

To put it simply, my wife hates Day Trips

Coping Strategy – Communicate

I have been known to just ask my wife if she would prefer a day trip or if I should just head out the night before.  I also try and make sure I have something in the crockpot that morning so that dinner is just that much easier for her.  Acknowledge that these trips are probably just as hard on your spouse as they are on you.  Believe me, they will appreciate the effort and acknowledgement.

So there is my argument against and my tips to help survive the Dreaded Day Trip.  I think everyone is healthier and happier if you can tag a night on somewhere (I prefer the front end of the trip) but if you can’t at least there are some ways to mitigate the damage.

Safe travels and I will see you on the road.

Diet, Fitness, My Favorite Things, RoadWarrior, Travel

Being Resolute

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Calvin

So it is the second week of the year.  The holidays are over, vacations are complete, the airports are becoming sane again and being resolute in the commitments we made over the new year may be becoming a bit harder than we expected.  Making resolutions always seems really easy, being resolute is another story entirely.  If you are like most Americans, your resolutions centered around 1) health 2) money and/or 3) relationships.  So as a RoadWarrior, how do we ensure that our resolutions become habit?

You decide in advance what you will and won’t do and we only make decisions once.

The problem with most ‘resolutions’ is they are focused on the end results and are not date specific.  In order to achieve them, we need to focus on the steps that will get us there, this is where the RoadWarrior Rules come in to play.

Let’s hypothetically say your resolution was to lose 10 – 15 lbs.

The first thing you need to do is to set a date.  When are you going to lose this weight by?  Don’ just ‘Begin with the End in Mind’, clearly define when is the End arriving?  A date is what moves a resolution to a goal (we’ll talk about moving the goal to a lifestyle later).

Next we need to set the activities (rules) that need to be followed and excluded until the goal is achieved.  This is exactly what the RoadWarrior Fitness rules are all about.  They are the Guardrails that set you up for success in your health journey on the road.  As a quick review:

  • Do something….anything….every day!!! – I really don’t care what it is. Run, lift, do Pilates, hit up a Beachbody DVD, walk the local mall/tourist attraction or train at a local martial arts studio.  Heck, I have been known to run on the treadmill in the Admirals Club and have been caught running stairs in the airport.  If you are doing more than a day trip, you need to be doing something active.
  • If you see fruit, eat it – Often times when you check in to your hotel, there are apples on the counter. Or in the gym, there is a basket of fruit.  Or in the airport gift shop, there is a refrigerator with various fruit options.  Pretty simple rule, see it….eat it.
  • Don’t eat anything fried – For the most part I avoid anything fried while on the road (there is a wonderful place in Fort Lauderdale that has lobster corndogs that I make an exception for though…unbelievably good and you can check them out at coconutsfortlauderdale.com). What this also means is I do not do ‘cheat meals’ on the road as my cheat meal usually involves something fried.  Those are saved for being at home with the family where we can enjoy it together.
  • Workout first, then you can have wine – I love red wine. I believe there is a reason that Jesus’ first miracle was turning water into wine… just sayin’.  However, my rule on the road is I will not have wine (or any other alcohol) if I have not had a workout first.
  • Don’t eat in any restaurant you could eat at at home – The restaurants you find at home and on the road are chains. They are all about systems and duplication.  Nothing necessarily wrong with that but I want quality and nutrition.  Ask the front desk or Yelp/Google/Urban Spoon about whom to go eat with.  Every region of the country has a specialty that when prepared right is fantastic tasting and fantastic for you.

Being resolute is a matter of being prepared more than disciplined.  Preparation allows you to avoid areas of temptation and put the actions that lead to success first.  These are my rules regarding healthy living on the road.  Start with your goal and set up the rules that will lead you to success in savings, improving your relationship, spending more time with you kids, whatever.  Be resolute.  Be better in 2015.

See you on the road.

Diet, Family, Fitness, RoadWarrior, Travel

Failing to plan is planning to Fail

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Sometimes I feel like all I do is plan to be on the road.  What clothes are clean?  What toiletries do I need to replace?  What’s the weather going to be like at the destination?  These are all things that readily run through my crazy road warrior head but the planning is not just limited to what I have to deal with, I also pay attention to what is going to happen back on the home front.

I am the one in the family who does the grocery shopping and meal planning.  It has become a bit of a Sunday tradition/therapy for me.  Sit in the morning with the coupons, see how much I can save while shopping and then spend the afternoon cooking one good meal to start the week as well as staples that can be thrown in the microwave throughout the week.

Where I have fallen short is not having a plan that is flexible and varied

Not to say the least about communicating that plan to my beautiful wife so that she might be able to execute on said plan.  I leave to eat restaurant meals throughout the week and leave the family at home with all kinds of ‘options’ but nothing solidified.  So in the bustle of wrestling practices, weightlifting, orchestra rehearsal, kickboxing and karate, the family is stuck grabbing whatever is ready in the fridge/pantry or making a Shakeology before racing out the door.  It is not the ideal and quite frankly, it is my failure.

You see, meal planning is not an issue for me.  I have no problem coming up with a plan for the week.  I also have no problem communicating it, where I lack is including creativity/variety in the plan.  I would eat the same thing all week without issue.  I enjoy structure and familiarity.  My family would appreciate eating something besides grilled chicken, brown rice and broccoli though.  I needed a solution that met all of our needs.

So I themed each day of the week

This gives me the structure I work best within but challenges me to vary the menu from week to week.  So here you go, here is my weekly ‘meal plan’:

Meatless Monday – Pretty simple to explain and especially appreciated in a house where one of us mostly eats vegetarian.

Taco Tuesday – Food delivered via foldable, edible container.  Could be Fish Tacos, could be Asian Lettuce Wraps.

Wet Wednesday – Soup!!

Throw it out Thursday – This day is all about the leftovers.  We are terrible about eating them unless we set a day aside to make sure we do.

Fishy Friday – Something from the sea (to be transparent, we eat fish at least 2-3 times a week already)

Sizzling Saturday – My day to fire up the grill

Sumptuous Sunday – I usually have more time to really try something different and time consuming.   This is normally the day I try and emulate something I have had on the road as well as cook for the rest of the week.

Each day is supremely flexible in the fact that we can use what is on sale, try new recipes, make it ahead and take it with us (coming soon on this ‘Picnic Parents’), make extra for lunch the following days, accommodate both vegetarian and meat lovers……you get the point.

Most importantly, it sets everyone up for success!!

The only step I have added to the normal routine is to be sure that the meal plan (including recipes) is printed out for the week.  Cut and paste from the websites/Pinterest boards that are relevant for the week…..I may even try putting together a shared board for my wife and I for the week……huh, just thought of that one.  Thanks!!

So remember, while you are about to race out for the week, your family is hunkering down awaiting your return.  Do everything you can to make their week as successful as yours!

See you on the road!!

Fitness, RoadWarrior

What’s your tribe? It’s bigger than you think….

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Everyone has at least one.  That group of people you feel most at home with.  You can probably tell who they are because they are the ones the embrace your crazy.  All the things that drive others nuts make them feel at home and comfortable.  Now that you have those other crazy folks in your mind, think about all the folks who don’t fit that mold.

“Sure I’m crazy.  But at least I’m your kind of crazy”

You see, I have been training for my first ever ½ marathon.  What that means to those of you non-runners out there is that I spend a good deal of my Sunday mornings on my ‘long run’ of the week.  It is the time when I am out logging between 8 to 14 miles at a time.  There is no way I could do this on the treadmill.  I would shoot myself but being outside on the road lets the scenery change and interact with all the other crazies that are out there doing the same thing.  I have become a part of the ‘running tribe’.  That is when I noticed a trend…..

Tribe members acknowledge each other.  They encourage each other.  They commiserate with each other.

Walkers (no, not that kind of ‘walker’ all you Walking Dead fans) always wave and acknowledge other walkers.  I watched 4 different groups of cyclists acknowledge each other this morning alone.  Every runner I came in contact with was quick with a smile/nod/wave.  It was very encouraging…….but I also noticed a second trend.

Tribes do not acknowledge other tribes.

For example, have you ever noticed when one motorcycle rider passes another, they put out a quick waive?  Happens almost every time.  They are part of the same tribe and acknowledging each other.  I actually think it is pretty cool but have you ever seen a motorcyclist waive at a monster truck driver?  Or a mini-van?  Or a sports car?  Nope.  Doesn’t happen.

The same thing happens in the fitness world.  Of those walkers and cyclists I referenced above, only one group of cyclists acknowledge me and I had to wave first.

But what if we expanded our tribe?

What if our tribe was not cyclists or walkers or runners?  What if our tribe was fitness enthusiasts?  Think about it, that cyclist had the same struggle I did this morning getting out of a warm bed to put their training ahead of comfort.  Those walkers are putting their health above their comfort just like the cyclists.

We live in a world where people live in the virtual and pay more attention to the screen in the palm of their hand than the actual world around them.  Join me in the commitment to engage with all fitness enthusiasts you encounter.  Give a wave, a nod or a good morning (if you can still carry a conversation) to everyone out pounding the pavement.  The world will be a better place for it and it will expand your tribe.

And let’s face it, when the zombie apocalypse does hit and ‘walkers’ takes on a whole different meaning, we are going to need all the tribe members we can get.

Diet, Fitness, RoadWarrior

Variety is the key to consistency!!

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“How do you do it?  How do you spend so much time on the road and stay in shape?”

It is a question I get a lot actually, way more than I would expect to.  I get it so often that I actually started a blog about just that (go figure!!).  The reality is it is no harder to stick with a fitness program on the road than it is when you are home (in fact, it may be easier).  The challenge is much greater than just being a Road Warrior, it really is about how do you make a fitness routine not feel like a……well, a routine?

Let’s take a couple of minutes to really break down what makes a good routine and how to make it stick.

Have a couple of unbreakable rules:

If you have read any of my previous posts, you know that being Road Warrior Fit centers around 5 key rules.  You can read all about them here but for summary’s sake, here you go:

  1. Do something, ANYTHING, every day
  2. See Fruit, Eat Fruit
  3. Don’t eat anything fried
  4. Workout first, then you can have wine
  5. Don’t eat in any restaurant that you could eat at at home

Then know when to break them:

No, I am not giving you permission to skip your workout today because there is a harvest moon or the fact that it is $0.25 wing night at the local watering hole.  However there are times that the best thing you can do for your body is rest.  So if you are sick or hurt, let your body work through the healing process.  You can read my own recent experience with fighting sickness while on the road here (don’t worry, I spare you the really gory details of my experience.  Trust me, you should thank me for that).

Variety is the spice of life:

Currently I am training for my first half marathon as well as the first Grappling Tournament I have done in several years.  Very different goals but it has added a variety to my weekly work out routines that I have really enjoyed.  The change in exercise and venue keeps my body guessing and brain engaged.  Although more than most will try and tackle, my typical week looks like this:

Monday – Lifting/TRX workout

Tuesday – Running and Kickboxing

Wednesday – Lifting/TRX workout

Thursday – Running and Kickboxing

Friday – Lifting/TRX workout and running

Saturday – Kickboxing/karate/grappling

Sunday – Lifting

The point being we are all creatures of habit.  We want familiarity in our lives.  We also get bored easily so having a familiar routine that is boring will lead to easy excuses to not follow through.  So plan to mix it up, cross train.   If you are a runner – mix up your routes/distances, speed, Interval train, etc.  Add in weight training at least one day a week (believe me, you will become a better runner).  If your chosen workout is cycling, find a set of Yoga videos you enjoy, the flexibility gains you will get will help with your cycling comfort and time.

Failing to plan is planning to fail:

Now before you think I am either insane for working out as much as the list above suggests or that I am just lying trying to make myself look good, that list is my options for each day.  If I am lucky enough to be home on a Tuesday or Thursday night, you can be sure to find me on the mat for Kickboxing.  If I am on the road, you will find me out on the road getting in a run.   Since I know my options, I am able to plan around the travel.  Variety is the spice of life but just like cooking with spice, you have to have a plan going into the preparation to come out with a dish worth eating.

So has your routine become routine?  Plan today to mix it up then let me know how it works for you.  Until then, I’ll see you on the Road.

City Reviews, Fitness, My Favorite Things, RoadWarrior, Travel

Fitness and sightseeing – a perfect match

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“Traveling to all those different cities must be so interesting!!  You get to see so much!!”

There it is.  The two sentence combination that immediately tells me that my conversation partner is what I like to call a ‘tourist’.  The kind of person who only travels for pleasure and has no idea what business travel is really like let alone real RoadWarrior stuff (oh, how I long for the bliss of those days).  For those of you who can call yourselves ‘tourists’, let me say that I envy you and let me also provide you with some insight as to what the typical business trip looks like.

Wake up early ->  Jump on a plane -> Get in cab to client offices -> Conduct meeting -> Uber to hotel -> Shuttle to the airport

In and Out….as quickly as possible.  That was my routine for a long time and to a great degree still is but that does not mean you can’t fit some of the life of the city in and keep fit.

Over the past few weeks, I have had the opportunity to spend very short stints of time in some of my favorite sightseeing destinations.  Seattle, Chicago, New York and DC.  With the exception of Chicago, my trips to all 4 were less than 24 hours in total duration but I still managed to spend time experiencing the Manhattan Skyline, Soldier Field and the lake, the Seattle waterfront and Space Needle and the vast majority of the DC monuments (isn’t my workout selfie wonderful?).  I did it by incorporating my sightseeing expeditions with my fitness routine.

I know, not everyone loves running but most everyone can run or walk and if the line at the treadmill in these cities was any indication, a lot of RoadWarriors were spending significant time on those machines.

Take that run/walk outside and experience the city!!

With just a little bit of planning, or the right app, you can find a route that will put you on the right path to a workout and a great tour of the city.  I use www.mapmyrun.com to plan my routes.  In a matter of clicks I had routes to see the city and a guide to make sure that I was following the right path.

Soldier Field

4 miles in Chicago let me see the lake and Soldier Field.

Empire State

2 miles in New Jersey let me get an unbelievable view of the NYC skyline.

WWII monument

5 miles in DC gave me a route that hit all of the major memorials and the White House.

So get out of that dingy hotel gym (let’s face it, even the nicest of them are usually in the basement or some underutilized corner of the facility) and get outside.  Pick a monument, a theatre, a landmark and take your own workout selfie.  I promise you, you’ll be glad you did.

City Reviews, Family, Fitness, Product Reviews, RoadWarrior, Travel

Make it Work!!

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My ratio of pleasure vs. work travel is infinitesimally small but I was fortunate enough this past extended weekend to travel to LA & Santa Barbara with my wife Joy  On paper the trip was ideal, 4 days with just the two of us enjoying our native California sand and sun.  One day as a couple in Santa Monica and 3 up in Santa Barbara where we would reconnect with fellow UCSB Gaucho alumni and their families.  What could be wrong with that kind of trip?  Romance, friends, California sun, great food and my beloved Ocean, virtually nothing could derail this trip, unless of course the hotel we stayed at did not have a gym.

Which of course, it didn’t.

Now when I travel for business, I am faced with all kinds of options as to where I would like to stay.  The choice is mine and very often it comes down to ‘Who has the best gym?’.  But this time we were traveling with 5 other families, from all over the country with kids of all ages all getting together in the same spot.  My fitness needs took a back seat (and rightfully so) to the greater needs of the collective.  So as we found the one hotel in the Santa Barbara area that could house our motley crew, it was up to my wife and I to figure out a way to make fitness a priority.  We had a choice to make.

We could either let it slide for the weekend (I mean really, it is just a weekend) or we could make it work.  So make it work we did.

Santa Monica was easy, with a full gym a located less than a block from the beach and running paths, it was a no brainer.  Easy-peasy and I got to enjoy sights like the one below.

Santa Monica

Santa Barbara was a lot tougher but thank God I had Joy with me. 

You see she is a Beachbody Coach and in the middle of a PiYo challenge so I focused on her routine rather than mine.  She had her workouts downloaded already and even though we did not have a single weight, treadmill or elliptical at our disposal, we got 3 challenging workouts in over the 3 days in Santa Barbara.  Without a workout room, we even had to improvise on the location (it is amazing how much space your standard pool deck has when you move the chase lounges out of the way) where we could complete the PiYo workouts. To say we improvised is putting it mildly.   Joy even took video of our space for one of her accountability groups which can be seen below and as you can see, there was a great deal of improvisation going on with these workouts.

Now I am not going to lie, we got a lot of funny looks from the other guests who were passing us doing our PiYo on the pool deck.  Our preferred workout area was directly on the path for all hotel guests who were getting their breakfast from the free buffet.

And for every ‘You guys are so good’ comment I heard or crazy eye directed our way, I had to remind myself that;

a) Their opinion did not matter – living longer for my wife and kids does

b) It is my health and not theirs – I can only choose to affect my own health, they can only choose to affect their health

c) We do crazy stuff like this so that we can enjoy the good stuff later – Like Brophy Brothers which is one of our absolute favorite dining spots on the planet and the location of the picture below;

Brophy selfie

So don’t let opinion, resources or apathy get in the way of you achieving your fitness goals while on the road.  You can always do something.  Walk, run, do a body weight series or maybe even a PiYo workout.  Regardless of the circumstances, you can do something and you will feel worlds better for it when you are done.

Diet, Family, Fitness, RoadWarrior
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I took the picture above in March of 2013.  The person you see is my eldest son shortly after his 13th birthday.  He is a very fit (now) 14 year old who runs, lifts with me, is a 2nd Degree Black Belt (think grappling, sparring, kata, kickboxing, etc) and is getting ready to undertake wrestling this upcoming year as he enters high school.  He is not a kid you would think would have a ‘fitness’ problem.

That is until he got his cholesterol checked a few days ago.

It was a part of the standard well check this past week.  We have a history of heart issues and diabetes in the family so we pay close attention to these types of things, happily signing off on just about any blood test our Doctor (who is fabulous) wants to run.  So cholesterol checking we did go.  Now it was not off the chart, doesn’t require medication and was just on the borderline but it got me thinking.

If this teenager, who has a solid diet (no really, he does for a teenager), a body fat % that is probably in the single digits, works out more than most team sport athletes his age do and has no early onset heart disease in his family can have high cholesterol counts, how bad are the rest of us sitting?  And as a RoadWarrior, how do we fight it?

The tips below should not be new news to anyone but are worth reiterating as we can all slip from time to time:

  • Know your number – because knowing is half the battle!! (only GI Joe fans will get that one)

The total Cholesterol is not the only important number, you need to know the LDL (bad) vs. HDL (good) cholesterol counts.  Even if your total cholesterol is great but it is all in the LDL category, you still have an issue.  It is a simple test that most clinics/drugstores/blood banks can do for you.  I have the privilege of being a universal blood donor and every time I give, they check my cholesterol for me.

  • Exercise – I know. Shocking I would suggest this.

Studies show that regular exercise, of any type, can directly assist in raising the ratio of HDL to LDL.  Don’t skip just because your schedule is busy and it has been a long day.  Remember the first rule of being RoadWarriorFit?  Do something, ANYTHING, everyday.

  • Avoid overly processed foods

There are so many reasons to follow this advice and the best summary I have ever seen is the film Forks over Knives.  Fair warning, watching this film could change your life (for the better).

  • Focus your protein consumption around lean cuts of meats

You can still have your steak (my son’s favorite) but not every night.  Opt for long swimming fish (tuna, swordfish, shark, salmon, etc.) that is not farm raised one night a week.  How does chicken (not fried) sound for Wednesday?  Mix it up.  After all, variety is the spice of life!!

  • Eat the green stuff

Fruits and veggies that are high in fiber can act like scouring pads for your arteries.  Even if you never eat another piece of meat in your life, your liver is still producing enough cholesterol for your body to do phenomenally well.  Think about that, you are already producing all of the cholesterol your body needs (yes, we actually do need it).  As RoadWarriorFit rule #2 states, see fruit – eat fruit.

So while I while I work with my son to choose the chicken over the steak burrito while at his beloved Chipotle, I hope that we can work together to make the right choices on the road (eating your veggies instead of the fries, hitting the gym instead of the lobby bar, etc).  I also hope we all are able to have a back like this kid does at some point in our lives.

Wish me luck.  We spar/grapple with each other on a regular basis and he is only getting bigger and faster.

RoadWarrior, Spirit

What Mike Ditka had to say about being RoadWarriorFit

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I recently had the great pleasure of hearing Mike Ditka speak as the keynote address to the attendees at our annual conference.  I have to be honest though, I did not have high hopes for his message.  I have every respect for him as a player, idolize him as a coach and appreciate him as a broadcaster but as a public speaker?  Let’s just say I was less than optimistic.

To put it simply, he blew me away.

While he shared some great stories, expounded on the current state of the NFL and had many pieces of sage advice, the one piece that particularly struck me was the following:

“If you are out working hard and on the road all week, don’t do some stupid ass thing with your buddies on the weekend.  That time is for your family” – Mike Ditka

I wanted to get up and scream “AMEN!!”

You see, it is particularly hitting home this weekend.  My family and I have been helping the ‘family’ across the street move to ‘their’ new home.  The reason I chose to use ‘family’ and ‘their’ in quotations is because only the mother and the kids who were heading to the house we assisted with.  The husband in this case has chosen to move on and move elsewhere.  You see,  he is on the road a lot and has simply grown apart. However, he is not a RoadWarrior.  He is the antithesis of a RoadWarrior.

It appears that through his physical separation, he has separated emotionally from the rest of his household as well.  He has other interests, other activities, other priorities.  He has separated from his wife and her kids.  He has chosen the path of least resistance.

A RoadWarrior does not quit.  They move forward but they absolutely do not quit.  They understand that life is lived at home and is not put on hold till they get back.  The work they do on the road is maximized in order to maximize their time at home.  By working their tails off while on the road, they ensure they are able to maximize their time with (not around) their family while they are at home.

That is why we helped the family across the street move and settle in to their new house.  Not just me.  My wife and both of my boys also.  We skipped our normal time on the karate matt.  We passed on being a part of the black belt test that was being conducted this afternoon.  We put off dinner with the grandparents who we have not seen in weeks.  We were present in the lives of those who needed us most, the family across the street and each other and we did it as a family

Iron Mike’s words could not have rung truer today.  I love to golf but that is 5 hours away from those who deserve my attention.  I am constantly trying to find more ways to be on the karate matt (most Saturday’s involve 5+ hours either doing or instructing) but today that would have been a ‘stupid ass thing to do’.  Today, I needed to feed into the lives of my neighbors by my actions and to my kids by my example.

Remember RoadWarriors, we do what we do for our families and friends.  Not in spite of them.