By: Clare Pattison

It’s holiday time!  We’re taking a long road trip through the mountains and out to the west coast for the next two weeks.  Gone are the days I would watch from the car at stops while the kids ran around or just sit in my lawn chair at the campsite too hot, tired and cranky to move.  I am 174 pounds lighter and so much fitter than I was then.  This trip I want to do my best to stay active despite long hours in the car so here's my plan. 

I'm taking my resistance band and a skipping rope with me on the trip.  Yes, you read that right, a skipping rope.  There is one hanging on the wall in my gym and I've been eyeing it for a while.  Yesterday I got up my courage, took it down and tried it out.  If it turned out to be a colossal epic failure, at least I gave it a shot.  I’m not a runner and there are no ellipticals in the campgrounds and I want something more intense than walking.  The skipping was GREAT cardio.  Even taking it slow and easy was Holy Heart Rate, Batman!  I could only do 60 turns at a time and then take a break.  I’m heading off after to work to buy my own.  Whipping that out at a roadside stop or in the campground is going to be super!

What else can I do while on the road?  I can use my resistance band for all my back, chest and arm exercises by wrapping it around a tree, over a beam on the playground monkey bars, or just standing on it.  I can do step ups on a park bench.  I can do lunges and squats anywhere at all.  I can use the picnic table seat for push ups and to put my legs up on for crunches.  I can just be a kid and run up the playground equipment and down the slides, especially fun now that I fit!  And when we stop for the day, there is always that wonderful exploring walk around the campground.

And food for the road?  No more cheezies, chips, twizzlers and pop (soda) in the car!  I have beef and turkey jerky, roasted almonds, apples and water bottles in the cooler along with some good quality protein bars just in case.  We’re planning on buying ready-cooked roast chickens and bagged salads at the grocery stores for picnics along the way, and Subway roast turkey “make your sub a salad” as the quick stop of choice.  I’ve got our protein powder and shaker bottle tucked in there as well.  And there won’t be a roadside fruit stand that we don’t stop at!  I think we’re going to save money as well as eat healthier this trip!

So that’s the plan!  It’s going to be an active, healthy and fun holiday!