A Bodybuilder’s Travel Guide Staying On Track When You’re On the Road: A Bodybuilder’s Travel Guide

Staying On Track When You’re On the Road: A Bodybuilder’s Travel Guide

When people think about bodybuilding, they picture routine. Same meals, same gym, same schedule, day after day. But the truth is—even the most dedicated athletes have to travel.

Whether it’s work trips, visiting family, or getting to a competition, travel breaks your routine in every way. That’s when most people fall off.

But if you want to keep progressing, you can’t just throw your plan out the window every time you leave home. You need to adapt without losing sight of what matters.

Scouting Your Training Options

One of the first things I do when I know I’ll be traveling is research local gyms. Look at hotel gyms, nearby commercial spots, or even day-pass options.
But let’s be real—hotel gyms are usually an afterthought. Half the time you’re lucky to get some dumbbells and a cable stack.
Here’s how I adjust:

  • Prioritize Movements, Not Machines: Push, pull, hinge, squat patterns—find some way to hit them
  • Use Higher Reps/Tempos: Can’t go heavy? Slow down the rep, increase the set count
  • Keep in Your Staples: I am huge on tracking with the log book and nearly every gym has free weights, so I can at least compare my performance on 1 or 2 lifts while on the road

I’ve done entire peak week workouts in tiny hotel gyms with a single cable tower and adjustable dumbbells. It’s not perfect, but it’s consistent and convenient. That’s what matters.

Adjusting Nutrition Without Derailing

The second piece most people mess up? Food.

I see two extremes:

  • Overly rigid—they pack 7 days of Tupperware, stress over every missing gram
  • Overly loose—they say “I’ll just eat what I can” and derail completely

The reality is you can build flexibility in travel without blowing your prep or offseason plan. However, if you are deep in prep, the reality is that you have to stay relatively rigid to not lose time on prep.

My approach for non prep travel:

  • Plan Anchor Meals: 2–3 meals I know I can hit accurately each day
  • Fill the Gaps Strategically: Grab a grocery store rotisserie chicken and rice. Use hotel breakfast eggs. Don’t stress if you swap carbs or proteins, just keep the macros in range
  • Back-Up Shelf-Stable Options:
    • Tuna packs
    • Rice cakes, bagels, fruits
    • Almonds or nut packs
    • Animal Meal or Whey for a fast, controlled meal

Animal Meal is my go-to on trips. It’s designed for shelf life and easy macros. Toss pre-portioned bags in your carry-on — no need for giant tubs.

Packing Your Supplements Like a Pro

You don’t need to haul every single tub and bottle you own.

  • Use a Pill Organizer or Tackle Box: Count out your Animal Pak, Omega, Flex, or whatever else you take
  • Individual Baggies for Powders: Just bring what you need in a Ziplock. No tubs in the luggage. I bring a food scale and weigh out the powders so no scoop is even needed

Your routine doesn’t need to break because you’re not at home. It just needs to travel better.

Adapting to Time Constraints

When you’re on the road, time isn’t always on your side. You may only have 30 minutes before a work meeting, or your Uber took too long to pick you up.

  • Condense Workouts: Use supersets or giant sets to hit everything, but keep your execution in mind, and don’t let your form get sloppy
  • Focus on Compounds: Don’t waste time on ten variations if you only have half an hour
  • Travel Days Are Off Days: Travel can already be a mess if flights are delayed and needing to source food once arriving. Just take some extra rest days on the days you travel

I’ve forced training to happen while traveling and got injured. I really should have taken time off from the gym, and it would have been more beneficial.

Final Thought: Progress Over Perfection

Travel doesn’t have to wreck your momentum when it comes to travel workout or staying fit while traveling. It doesn’t have to be “all or nothing.”
Plan. Adapt. Execute.

If you treat travel like an excuse to skip, you’ll keep restarting your progress. But if you treat it like a challenge to manage, you’ll stay consistent, even when life isn’t.

That’s how you really win long-term in bodybuilding.

P.S. Don’t forget to check out your protein options. 

About The Author
John Jewett is a IFBB pro, a top five Olympia competitor, and five-time powerlifting World Champion. Beyond his bodybuilding accolades, John holds a bachelors in Exercise Science, a Masters in Nutrition. He’s also a Registered Dietitian and self-proclaimed muscle nerd, generously sharing his extensive knowledge of fitness and nutrition with the Animal community.

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