With the British weather not exactly guaranteed to give us what we need right now (sun, where are you?!), you may be getting tempted to book yourself a holiday for some summer sun.
Whilst holidays are often a time for relaxing, keeping yourself in shape is also an important consideration for overall health. For those of us who don't fancy the hotel gym, here we give you a few holiday ideas of places to go where training is part of the lifestyle and can fit into your holiday plans with ease.
1. F45 in Spain
The F45 franchises have risen in popularity in the UK recently, with many London clubs filling to capacity in every class. The F45 model offers high intensity workouts in 45 minutes, giving you a workout blast without taking up too much of your day.
Classes include strength elements, plyometric elements and have an undercurrent of cardiovascular work. The good news is, this popular concept has now expanded into Spain - Barcelona, Madrid and Bilboa being the first studios to open. With their huge choice to amenities, good food and excellent training facilities, all 3 would make a decent holiday choice this summer.
2. Any Sandy Beach
Training on sand reduces joint impacts and gives a proprioceptive challenge to joints, meaning the smaller stabilising muscles in the lower legs have much more of a job to do when running or jumping on sand.
Research has looked at performing the same exercises on sand and grass. Despite using an identical workout, training on sand resulted in higher heart rates and higher perceived exertion, whilst interestingly resulting in no differences between markers of muscle damage or inflammation 24 hours post training.
Put simply, training on sand makes your body work harder without increasing post exercise recovery time, giving you more bang for your buck. Luckily there is an abundance of sandy beaches to pick from all round Europe and even the UK if we get some sun, so any of these are an ideal, fuss free place to train during your holiday.
3. Mountain Hikes
The great thing about any hike or walk is by its nature there is a difficulty continuum, meaning virtually anyone can take part and find a hike suitable to their level of fitness. A hike up mountainous terrain gives a brilliant cardiovascular workout as well as giving you the reward of some pretty spectacular views once you get up there.
There is a growing body of research that links being outside in open, green spaces with reducing stress levels, as well as reducing blood pressure and overall feelings of wellbeing.
Slovenia is full of stunning mountains and lakes, with enviable views from most of the hikes. As well as being a peaceful country with a small population, there are many hiking options all round the country with plenty of good food around also for that all important refuelling.
