10 Steps To A Fit & Functional Road Trip
BY: Alex Pennington June 2019
We all know how exhausting and physically detrimental a road trip can do to us. Here are 10 ways to stay fit and functional from the start of your drive till your arrival.
1) Stop every 2 hours max
You have a big adventurous trip in front of you. The last thing you want is to be stiff and slow moving. If you can, find rest stops or gas stations along the way, and get out! It’s time to move that body and walk around. This will keep your body from tightening up and causing you dysfunctional movement once you’ve gotten out of the car. So, stop every 2 hours max and take a walk, stretch, and stand. Give your body some freedom to get out of that seated position.
2) Workout the day before
Give your muscles some added blood flow during the drive by getting that workout in a day before you get on the road. You want your body functioning optimally once you’ve arrived, and a good hard workout will help greatly for your body and piece of mind. The road can be rough, a workout even a day before will continue to provide additional endorphins to keep you happy and clear minded. Some great ideas for exercises are going to be anything that extends your body up and back. So, get on your squats, lunges, back extensions, rows and pull ups to get the full effect! I personally love the “superman” to end my workouts with, in preparation to fight the prolonged sitting of the road.
3) Roll out!
Rolling out or SMR is a technique that is used to get out the tightest of knots and increases blood flow within our musculature. You are going to want to take about 20 mins before your drive to focus on some key areas. Let’s start from the top and go down. The neck. The neck can often get very stiff after being in a seated position for a length of time and can really put a damper on the trip once inflamed. To fight this, we want to attack the trapezius and pectoralis minor. I recommend getting a lacrosse ball or tennis ball and if you can, get a TheraCane. Theracanes are awesome for getting out hard to reach places like the traps. You are going to want to spend at least one minute per area to really open those spots up. The quadriceps and hip flexor complex. Another vital area to cover, since these muscles will have a direct affect on your walking, standing, and can put strain on the lower back and hips. You will want to use a foam roller here. Just as before we want to spend about a minute in each area before moving to the next spot. The quads go from above the knee to about ¾ up the leg, and the hip flexors cover the upper ¼ and the inside and outside of that portion of the leg. The calves and foot. When these are tight they severely effect our movement and the way we walk and stand. Problems here can go all the way up to the lower back and can also cause issues in the neck. You can negate this by using a foam roller and your lacrosse ball/tennis ball. For the calves, we want to get behind the knee all the way down to the heal. You will find various discomforts within this area, I recommend focusing in each of these painful spots for at least one minute before moving on to the next. For the foot, you are going to want to use that lacrosse ball and place your foot on top while standing or leaning against a wall. I recommend rolling up and down within the arch at least 20x and the same with the outside portion of the underfoot, going from pinky toe to heal. During this you are going to want to take notice of those “spots” that cause the most discomfort and spend another minute focusing into them. Once you’ve gotten those knots out, your body will be much more mobile and once the drive is over you will notice much more of a spring in your step, ready to get to the next portion of the trip.
4) Pre-pack your food
Yes, we always think of taking the necessary time to pack our clothes but just as important for our health, we want to pre-pack what our meals as well! Nutrition is vital to keeping you going and feeling good throughout the drive. We also need to be as carful as possible while driving. Anytime we take both hands off the wheel for a “bite”, we are putting the lives of ourselves and others at danger. With easy to grab foods, this greatly diminishes the possibility of losing control of the vehicle and prevents the inability to react to a dangerous situation. Here are my suggestions for the essentials: protein bars, all-natural nuts, carrots, low carb tortilla lunch wraps, and various berries. Having healthy options are going to keep you moving forward without feeling bogged down and will give your body the nutrition it needs throughout the drive. And the reason these choices are great is because of the ease of eating them without having to take focus off the road in front of you.
5) WATER
Hydration is key to getting through a long drive. One of the easiest things to do is to forget to stay hydrated. Some of the effects of dehydration are tiredness, headaches, dry skin, dizziness, and loss of electrolytes. Many of us will pick up a coffee, energy drink, or soda before the drive. It’s easy to think that these drinks will give us energy and push us forward. While these can be good at times for the drive, we need to remind ourselves that caffeine is a temporary stimulant and that it has also been shown to be a diuretic as well. Diuretics will cause the body to have to urinate more frequently and in turn cause you to become more easily dehydrated. You are going to want to make sure you’ve prepacked at least 4 or 5 bottles per person. Smart water has a large convenient sized bottle that’s about 33.8 fl/oz and will fit comfortably in most cup holders. This will eliminate the need for excess bottles when packing. I also like the convenience of a sports bottle top which will make it easier to open and close the bottle without having to take your hands off the wheel. Safety first!
6) Get comfortable with using the cruise control
Cruise control. There is debate to whether the cruise control is effective or harmful during a drive. I personally could not take a long-distance drive without it. While driving normally, we have to stay in a very stiff position without much wiggle room. I found this to be one of the major causes to neck pain, uncomfortability, and nausea during the trip. Even the slightest ability to shift one’s hip will help increase blood flow throughout the body and will help with overall comfortability. The cruise control button helps so much with this. Once you give yourself the ability to take your foot off the gas pedal, that will then allow you to adjust into better posture and can take a lot of tension off that leg as well. In the long run, we are trying to ovoid prolonged positions and it’s not sensible to get out of the car every 10-20 minutes. So, having this option greatly helps us make even minute adjustments. Having that ability will help you fight stiffness and discomfort for longer periods of time. So, start learning those controls and start wiggling around!
7) Find an enjoyable Podcast or Audio Book
Get your mind right! I know we love music on our drives, but let’s change things up. If you haven’t discovered podcasts and audio books already, do yourself a favor and start looking into them. These shows and stories will really help take your mind of the monotony of your drive. Not only is it important to keep entertained when sitting in the car, but it’s also important to be intellectually stimulated to help keep focused. I recommend finding a several comedy podcasts, an intellectual podcast, and a historical one. Its good to change things up and each podcast can be around an hour to three hours in length. After you’ve gotten through a show, you’ll wonder where all that time went! For an audio book, I like to use the Audible app on my phone. This app has an endless number of books and they are always adding to it. The app has a free trial, where you can download a book for free. Which is a great way to see if you like the service. How can you beat a long dramatic Steven King horror, while on your way to your destination?
8) Bring a companion
What better way to break up that silence, with some good ol fashion conversation. Having someone accompany with you on the drive is not always an option. But if possible send out the invitation well before the trip. Pick a good friend or you’re significant other and share the experience. With a good travel companion, you can trade off responsibilities of driving, have a helping hand with anything you need, and just enjoy the company of another. Any type of relief from the road will support mind and body.
9) Pit stop at the gym
Here is a great way to motivate you to get out and make a long-lasting effect on the disfunctions a drive can cause. When planning your route, find a gym about halfway or more into the trip that is convenient to stop at. You will need to make sure you have at least a half hour to spare, to get a proper workout. Also, don’t forget to throw an extra set of clean clothes to change into after. Here is your workout plan: fast passed walking for 3 minutes as a warm up and getting your body to extend out of that seated position; quick minute full body active stretching; two sets of walking lunges(find an area where you can complete at least 10 lunges each way); 3 sets of 10 reps of split stance deadlifts; 3 sets of 10 back extensions; 3 sets of 15 single arm kneeling rows; 3 sets of 12 single arm dumbbell shoulder presses; 4 sets of 10 dumbbell shoulder fly’s; Tabata rower or 30 sec on 30 sec off treadmill run. Done. That’s it, get in, get out, and get back on the road refreshed and feeling great!
10) Bring a lacrosse ball
Maybe the most helpful and easy to manage tool to fight tightness and discomfort when in the car is the lacrosse ball. With the lacrosse ball you can get some relief on those sore achy areas that arise from prolonged sitting. Is your back tight? Just smash that little ball in between your sore spot and the seat and let it sit there for a few minutes. Neck irritating you? Take that lacrosse ball and put it in between the back of the neck and the head rest. Anything else? Just repeat and feel the quick relief of some trigger point therapy.
In conclusion.
You want to get through the drive with as little discomfort as possible and feeling strong and capable as possible once you’ve gotten to your destination. These steps and helpful tips will help dramatically with this and keep you fit and functional throughout your drive and trip.