In boxing, they say it’s the punch you don’t see coming that knocks you out. In the wider world, the reality we ignore or deny is the one that weakens our most impassioned efforts towards improvement. ~ Katherine Dunn
When I travel, whether it be for work or fun, I try to keep up with some sort of an exercise routine. This was challenging for me at first, partly because I don’t care to use hotel gyms.
My beef with hotel gyms?
First, I usually exercise in the mornings when I’m on the road and I’ve noticed many of the people who fill up hotel gyms in the wee hours of the morning tend not to be too chipper-cheery. Although I have a general aversion to grumps, my issue with this when I travel is that over the years I’ve gotten the sense that the last person a super-focused corporate warrior wants to encounter while banging out an early morning workout is someone like me who practices smile therapy as an antidote to introversion.
Second, no longer young and sprightly, I need to be careful to avoid injuring myself while working out. As such, I’ve grown to appreciate the benefits of properly warming up, knowing my limits, and avoiding scotch as a recovery drink. I’ve also learned that an easy way to injure myself is to use equipment I’m not familiar with, which, since I don’t use gym equipment at home, is pretty much every piece of equipment in a hotel gym.
Lastly, ever mindful of how travel can throw me off my game back at home, I go to great lengths to preserve as much time in the morning to keep up with daily routines and stay plugged in to work. In my case, because gyms are not a part of my typical workout routine, aside for the reasons mentioned above, I don’t want to erode time in the morning trying to figure out where the hotel gym is, how to use equipment I’m not familiar with, or speak to someone before I’ve had my morning tea.
So, does my aversion of hotel gyms mean I forgo exercising while on travel? Absolutely not! In next week’s article, I’ll share some of my tips for staying active while on the road.
Until then, how about some music for our Manufacturing Peace of Mind™ Spotify playlist?
Regardless of where your travels take you this summer and why, a great way to put yourself in a frame of mind to embrace what Keats referred to as “negative capability,” is to roll with the punches when something doesn’t go as planned. With that in mind, here is Van Morrison with his song “Roll with the Punches” off of his recent album of the same name.
Cheers…xian
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