Staying on plan while traveling.
Most people handle travel one of 2 ways. They white-knuckle it, try to control everything, and end up anxious the whole trip. Or they say "screw it," let it all go, and come home feeling like garbage wondering where the last week went.
I've been both of those people.
Growing up, travel wasn't something we did often. When we did, it was pure fun-maxing. No structure, no thought, just go. And by the end of the day you felt 15 pounds heavier with legs like cement blocks. I didn't understand at the time what was actually costing me, but I also didn't have the awareness to do anything different.
Then I got serious about my health and the problem got worse, not better. Because now I cared, but I still had no plan. So instead of being present and enjoying myself, I was anxious the entire time, trying to be perfect, failing at it, and just throwing everything out the window anyway. That cycle is exhausting.
Here's what actually fixes it: having an honest conversation with yourself before you leave.
Not a complicated plan. Just clarity on what the trip is actually for, what matters to you while you're there, and where you're willing to give and take. That's it. When you have that conversation ahead of time, you don't have to think about it actively while you're there. You already know what to expect from yourself. You just execute.
The 3 things worth having a plan for:
Nutrition. Training. And how you actually intend to enjoy yourself.
On nutrition, the real question is what do you have access to? Is there a grocery store nearby? Can you pack non-perishables? If I'm traveling, I'm almost always bringing whey protein because hitting protein goals on the road is the hardest part. Even if everything else goes sideways, protein is my anchor. Keep it simple and know your 1 or 2 non-negotiables.
On training, be honest with yourself. Hotel gyms are usually a treadmill and 2 mismatched dumbbells. You can work with that. Raul and I once had one of the hardest sessions of the trip in a minimal hotel gym at Universal and walked out wrecked. But the point is we didn't lie to ourselves about it either. If you're going on a hike, cool. That's not a weightlifting session. Don't call it one.
On enjoyment, here's the reframe I keep coming back to: you don't stop brushing your teeth when you travel. Your health doesn't get a pass because you're out of your zip code. That's not me being restrictive. It's me saying this is your life, not a loophole. You can eat good food, try new things, and have a genuinely great time while still respecting what you agreed to with yourself.
When I was in Greece and Italy with my wife, we ordered smaller plates and shared everything. We got to taste everything we wanted. I wasn't miserable, I wasn't bloated, and we still had 5 more miles to walk through cities with actual hills. (Rome will humble you.) The plan didn't take anything away from the experience. It's what made the experience possible.
The reward isn't that you ate the cake. The reward is that you had the cake and still felt good afterward.
We covered a lot of ground in this episode and we're only halfway through. Part 2 is where we get into the actual mechanics: how to build the plan, apply the tools, and walk through real scenarios so you leave with something you can use.
Go listen to the full episode on Spotify and come back for Part 2. It's worth the time.
