Hotel Room Circuit Workout

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traveling can make it difficult to maintain an exercise routine

It can be hard to stick to your normal workout routine when you're traveling, since you're usually dealing with jet lag, time changes, and unfamiliar surroundings. It's usually not possible to go for a run outdoors or get in a good workout at the hotel gym, since they are often small and have old equipment.

It's possible to work out your whole body in a hotel room while traveling, so you don't have to break your workout routine.

In this guide, we will introduce some workouts that can be done in a hotel room with limited space and time.

We will look at:

  • Should You Work Out When You Travel?
  • 5 Hotel Workout Ideas

Let’s get started!

Should You Work Out When You Travel?

Should you work out while traveling?

In short, the answer is that it is not necessary to work out while on vacation or traveling, but doing so can have many benefits for your physical and mental health.

thereby negating the benefits of your vacation If you want to maintain your fitness while on vacation, you should keep up with your workout routine. Otherwise, you will lose fitness and it will be difficult to get back into shape when you return home.

Some people believe that you should not exercise while on vacation, such as if you have just arrived and crossing time zones, if you are sick, or if conditions are not safe.

You should be guided by common sense and your instinct in these cases.

5 Hotel Room Workout Ideas

When traveling, you may have to do a hotel workout in your room if there are no other options. Some hotels have gyms, but the hours may be poor or the equipment may not be good. Motels, inns, bed & breakfasts, and AirBnb  usually do not have fitness facilities.

Running outside can be dangerous depending on the traffic, road safety, and air quality. Some runners don’t feel safe going for runs alone in unfamiliar neighborhoods.

In such cases, a hotel workout in your room is a safer choice. Here are a few hotel room workouts for exercising when you travel:

#1: Total-Body Hotel Workout

Do 2-3 rounds of the following 10 bodyweight exercises, resting as little as possible. Each round should take 10 minutes.

  • 60 seconds of push-ups 
  • 60 seconds of alternating forward lunges
  • 60 seconds of chair/bed triceps dips 
  • 60 seconds burpees
  • 60 seconds calf raises
  • 60 seconds single-leg bridges (30 seconds per leg)
  • 60 seconds jump squats
  • 60 seconds plank 

#2: Tabata Hotel Workout

If you don't have a lot of time or space, a Tabata hotel workout is a good option. Tabata is a type of high-intensity interval training (HIIT) that involves really intense efforts and very short rest periods in a 2:1 ratio of work to rest.

The traditional Tabata format, developed by Dr. Izumi Tabata in 1996, is eight rounds of 20 seconds of nearly maximal-intensity work followed by just 10 seconds of rest, making the entire Tabata workout just 4 minutes long.

The original Tabata protocol was designed for cycling, but can now be used for any type of exercise.

A few good exercises to do in a hotel room for a Tabata workout are jumping rope, jumping jacks, burpees, squats, push-ups, high knees, sprinting in place, or V-ups.

During each of the 8 rounds, choose one exercise to do. If you have more time, do a secondTabata with a new exercise.




#3: Resistance Band Hotel Workout

If you want to make your hotel room workouts more intense, you can pack a few resistance bands in your suitcase.

You should look for a set of resistance bands that have small loop bands as well as long tube bands with handles. The sets of resistance bands usually have different strengths or thicknesses to provide different levels of resistance.

If you want to be able to continue your strength training workouts while traveling, you can buy a travel gym set like Gorilla Bow. This is a complete resistance training system that provides up to 350 pounds of resistance.

Here’s a hotel room resistance band workout for total-body strengthening. Complete 2-3 rounds:

  • 60 seconds of jumping jacks
  • 20 squats and overhead presses, stepping on the band with both feet shoulder-width apart
  • 20 push-ups
  • 15-20 resistance band curls
  • 60-second plank with leg extension (see instructions below)
  • 20 clamshells per side, using a booty band just above the knees
  • 20 resistance band split squat and row per side (see instructions below)
  • 20 resistance band triceps extensions standing on the band and pulling it back overhead straight up into the air
  • Shoulder clocks 10 per time (see instructions below) 
  • 20 single-leg bridges per side
  • 20 resistance band anti-rotation pulses, attaching the band at the door knob level (see instructions below)

Anti-Rotation Pulses

  1. Attach a resistance band with a handle to the door. You can perform the exercise kneeling or standing, but the band should be chest height and you should be far enough away from the anchor point that there’s a good amount of tension on the band.
  2. Position yourself so that your body is angled 90 degrees from the band. In other words, the anchor point is to your right or left side. Hold the handle of the band with your arms fully extended out in front of you. There should be significant tension on the band.
  3. Brace your core and contract your glutes, while pulsing the band side to side. For example, if the band is anchored to your left, pulse the band with extended arms to the right about 4 inches per pulse.
  4. Pulse 50 times and then switch sides.

Plank With Leg Extension

  1. Get in a forearm plank position with a loop resistance band around your ankles.
  2. While bracing your core and maintaining proper form, lift your right leg straight up as high as you can without bending your knee.
  3. Return to the starting position with control.
  4. Complete 15 slow reps, and then switch sides.

Split Squat and Row

  1. Secure a strong resistance band in a door or on a stationary object at chest height. It’s best to use a resistance band with a handle and double it so that you’re holding both ends and the middle is secured.
  2. Hold the resistance band handle or handles (if doubled) in your right hand. There should be a fair amount of tension on the band.
  3. Step your left leg forward and drop into a split squat, bending both knees to 90 degrees, while simultaneously pulling back on the resistance band to complete an upright row (pull your extended arm back towards your body by bending your elbow, retracting your scapula, and pulling backward). Keep your core tight, chest up, and back straight.
  4. Keep your feet staggered in the split squat position, but press through your feet to stand upright again while extending your arm forward to the starting position.
  5. Continue dropping into your split squat with every row.
  6. Complete 15 reps, and then switch sides.

Shoulder Clocks

  1. Get into a push-up position with your hands slightly wider than shoulder-width apart and a loop resistance band around your wrists. There should be a fair amount of tension on the band in this starting position.
  2. While keeping your body in a straight line from your head to your heels (keep your hips down and in line with your body), step your right hand as far out to the side (3:00 position on a clock) as possible and then back in again.
  3. Complete 10 reps to 3:00, as well as 10 to 1:00, 2:00, 4:00, and 5:00.
  4. Switch and step your left hand out to 9:00 for reps.
  5. Follow up with 11:00, 10:00, 8:00, and 7:00.

#4: Cardio Hotel Workout

This workout is a simple circuit of calisthenics that will take 20 minutes. It's a great way to get a sweat going when you can't get out for a run.

Then complete three sets of the following cardio exercises:

  • 60 seconds of high knees sprinting in place
  • 60 seconds of jumping jacks
  • 60 seconds of side to side hops over a line
  • 60 seconds of mountain climbers
  • 60 seconds of burpees
  • 60 seconds of fast feet (squatting down, legs wide, alternating weight-bearing legs as fast as you can)

#5: Core Hotel Workout

Do this 10-minute core routine in your hotel room, with no equipment necessary. You can do 2-3 sets if you’re feeling ambitious.

  • 60 seconds high plank with shoulder taps
  • 60 seconds forearm plank 
  • 60 seconds dead bug
  • 60 seconds bird dog 
  • 60 seconds right side plank
  • 60 seconds left side plank 
  • 60 seconds Russian twist
  • 60 seconds bicycle crunches
  • 60 seconds V-ups
  • 60 seconds up-down plank 

The next time you're travelling and find yourself at a hotel with a gym, pick one of these workouts to try out and let us know how it goes!

Here are some strength training exercises to try if you have gym access.

Movements

This list consists of five movement patterns (push, pull, squat/lunge, hinge, stabilize) and one additional movement pattern for things that do not fit neatly into the others. They are all beginner or intermediate level in difficulty. For visual learners, there is a description of the movement as well as a link to a video of someone doing and often explaining the movement.

Pull

Movements that involve pulling yourself towards an object, or pulling an object towards yourself, are known as pulling movements. These can be difficult to do effectively in a hotel room as you need something to pull and a sturdy place to hold onto.

  1. Doorway row
    Place your chest and feet against one side of a doorway. Grab on, and lean back until your arms are straight (or you hit the other side of the doorway) . Then, pull yourself back to vertical using your back and biceps. For added challenge and more range of motion, do this with one arm and the doorway to your side (like in the video above).
  2. Table row
    This is what’s called an inverted or horizontal row. You would normally do it on a racked barbell or purpose-built horizontal bar in a gym, but here, we’re going to perform it on an improvised piece of equipment: the underside of a sturdy table or desk. From underneath the table, grab the edge and straighten your ledge so you’re hanging underneath it (be sure to do this in a way that won’t flip the thing over onto your face). Pull yourself up until your chest touches the underside of the table, then lower yourself back down in a controlled fashion.
  3. Suitcase row
    This one isn’t actually a bodyweight movement — it’s an improvised equipment movement. Use a suitcase to do a one-armed row (like you would with a dumbell) by bending at the hips and knees until your hand is firmly grasping the side handle of the suitcase while it’s sitting on the ground, and then pulling it up towards your chest until it touches, keeping your hips, knees, and shoulders square. Add or remove heavy stuff from the suitcase to adjust difficulty.
  4. Towel row
    I recommend watching the video for this one. You’ll be doing a row like described above while holding onto a towel or bed sheet that’s pinned in between a closed door and its door frame. It seems a little scary, but it’s actually very stable as long as the towel or sheet isn’t slipping around, and has the added benefit of letting you adjust the angle at which you’re pulling.
  5. Chin-up/Pull-up
    This requires a pull-up bar or sturdy door frame with a thick lintel. Grab the bar, and pull yourself towards the bar using your back and biceps, with your upper back tight and your body in a straight line. Lower yourself back down in a controlled manner. If your palms are facing away from you, that’s a pull up. If they’re facing towards you, that’s a chin-up.

Hinge

Hinge movements are a type of movement where you fold and unfold at the hip. They are a bit more difficult to do without any equipment because it can be difficult to create a body position where there is enough gravity to exercise your posterior chain muscles effectively.

  1. Bridges/Hip thrusts
    Start on your back with your knees bent and your feet flat on the ground. Push your hips upward and squeeze your glutes to lift your pelvis as high as possible, then slowly lower yourself back down. If you have trouble feeling this in your glutes, moving your feet closer together while keeping your knees pointed outward (what Bret Contreras calls a frog pump can help.
  2. Donkey kick
    On all fours, kick one leg into the air, keeping your knee at a 90 degree angle and your back flat (you should be using your glutes and hamstrings, not your lower back). Hold for a strong glute squeeze at the top and lower back down.
  3. Leg curl
    Kneel facing away from something heavy, stable, and low to the ground.6 Hook your heels under this weight, and keeping your glutes squeezed and body straight, gently lower your chest towards the floor until you catch yourself with your hands. Then pull yourself back upward with your hamstrings — if this is too challenging, use your hands to give yourself a little pop of momentum on the way up.
  4. Bodyweight hinge (Good morning)
    With your feet shoulder width apart and your knees straight but not locked, bend forward at the waist, keeping your back flat, until you feel a stretch in your hamstrings. Then use your hamstrings and glutes to quickly raise yourself up to vertical.
  5. Single leg hinge (Single leg deadlift)
    This is just like the two-leg hinge, except you leave one foot on the ground and let the other leg move backwards as your chest bends forward. It’s slightly more challenging for balance and biomechanical reasons.

Workouts

You just need to decide three things when creating a workout routine: the focus of the workout, the duration, and the movements needed.

Before you begin a bodyweight resistance workout, it is important to know what your goals are. This type of workout will always involve some element of strength training. However, if your goal is more cardiovascular work, it might be simpler to go for a walk or a jog.

The type of bodyweight workouts you do will determine how much strength, endurance, and aerobic training you get.

 

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The Five Best Mobility Workouts for Staying Strong and Flexible