Most of us have the best of intentions to keep up our training routines while we travel. But then we get to our destination and realise that a) our hotel doesn’t have a gym b) there’s no gyms with casual passes near our Airbnb or c) we just can’t be bothered working out when there’s sightseeing to do and margaritas to drink. We feel you!
That said, it’s exponentially more difficult to get back into your fitness routine when you’ve gone cold turkey on exercise for a week or three. Plus, keeping it up will make you feel SO much better and healthier. If you ask us, the best way to excuse-proof your workout regime while you’re travelling is to bring simple equipment you can use for a full-body workout in your hotel room, Airbnb or local park or beach.
But let’s be honest—who wants to sacrifice shoe space in their luggage to bring workout gear on holidays? Here, we’ve rounded up 7 compact and lightweight pieces of travel-friendly workout equipment you can fit in your carry on.
Core Flyte
Used by the trainers at Lean Bean Fitness Studio to train the likes of VS model Victoria Lee, this little gadget gives you serious bang for your workout buck. By balancing your hands or feet on the base, you can add some extra burn to positions like planks, push-ups and mountain climbers.
Shop the Coreflyte
Powertube
The Powertube wins the award for most versatile piece of travel-friendly workout equipment. You can attach it to a doorframe or simply step on the middle for an effective, full-body resistance workout. It folds up tiny, so can easily be chucked in your hand luggage.
Shop the PTP Powertube
Booty Bands
Booty bands may look like just a stretchy piece of material, but don’t be fooled — your legs and glutes will burn after a workout using one of these bad boys. That said, not all booty bands are created equal. There’s nothing more annoying than when they slip and slide during your workout. Grace Fit UK’s range uses a blend of vegan cotton, polyester and rubber to ensure they stay put.
Shop Grace Fit UK’s resistance bands
Sliders
Easily the lightest and most portable piece of travel equipment, sliders can be used in your hotel room to add extra resistance to your workouts. These ones from Unit Nine are double sided with a felt and hard side, so they work on a range of surfaces.
Shop the Unit Nine Sliders
Skipping Rope
You can’t beat the good old fashioned skipping rope for giving you an effective cardio workout on the go. We love this one from Synergee because it’s compact, featherlight and, of course, rose gold.
Shop the Synergee Jump Rope
Portable Kettlebell
The portable kettlebell is so genius, we wish we’d thought of it first. With comfortable grip handles, it’s a bag you fill up with sand, dirt, gravel or whatever you can find to use for weighted workouts when you travel.
Shop the Portable Kettlebell
TRX
One of the OG pieces of travel-friendly workout equipment, the TRX can be attached to nearly anything (a door frame, tree, pole) for a full-body resistance training workout. It also comes with access to their training app, which allows you to find TRX workouts customised to your goals.
Shop the TRX
