As this blog shows, I had the opportunity to travel for most of my business career. One thing I noticed though is that most of my fellow travelers rarely venture outside their hotels especially in foreign countries. One big disadvantage has nothing to do with fitness. To get to know people and cultures you have to be with them. For 5-6 years I was dropping in Crossfit gyms on my travels and it was a great way to have friends all over the place. As my workout preferences evolved and changed, I realized that I wanted to do the workouts my way, regardless of programming in the local boxes or lack of equipment in the hotel. As I added more running and hiking to my routine, I ended up using a set of apps for my trips. Here are my favorites and what I use them for.
(I do not include links to the apps as I don’t do affiliate marketing. Please Google the apps.)
WODTRACKER – Daily Crossfit Whiteboard
WODtracker from Adrian Juhasz is an App of a Hungarian Crossfit box started by a top wrestler. The structure of the WODs stay consistent with timed lifts and Metcon most days long workouts Thursdays or Saturdays. I was following their programming for years. This is the one WOD I’m motivated to do any time. No fancy features, no tracking, just plain good daily programming. The app assumes you have access to all CF equipment. All scaling and adjustments are up to you.
KEELO – Individualized Crossfit Programming and Coaching
Many use Keelo as a replacement for the local CF gym. I have been using it for a few months on and off and like the self-adjusting workouts that evolve with your athletic abilities. In particular, it maintains several CF standards I’ve always liked: allows to scale up and down based on ability, provides standards for all movements, maintains competition if you want with your peers. At $90 a year it costs less than 10% of a basic CF gym membership. What I like also is that you can adjust the workout based on available equipment around you, from bodyweight to a full gym. You have access to CF coaches for questions and programming adjustments.
TABATA TIMER – When You Only Have Minutes for a Workout
As we all know, tabatas took all excuses away from not working out. If you have 4 minutes, better yet 16, then you can have a grueling workout with a Tabata Timer. My favorite is from Anuj Seth. I punch in the number of rounds (typically 4) and off I go. Any movements are fine. My standby 4-Tabata WOD is: burpees, pushups, situps and squats. Does the job.
STRAVA – For Running and Biking
My all-time favorite GPS tracker is Strava for anything outdoor especially running. (Yes, running is Crossfit…) It makes running and biking social by connecting to others running the same tracks or just following you. Running is a lonely sport, any social enablement is helpful.
ALLTRAILS – Hiking The World
I got into hiking recently for two reasons. One, it is a great way to see a new region or country. Second, hiking is great for rest days. Alltrails shows me the best rated trails anywhere I go and makes sure I don’t get lost in city jungles or real ones.