Fit Well Traveler

Hi,

Henry Moore from Fit Traveler sent me an email asking if he could do a guest post on my blog.  It’s a nice write and I like his website, please visit.  I need to take some of his advice.  🙂

Use those vacation days – it’s good for your mind, body and spirit

Photo by Pixabay

(His picture didn’t carry over when I cut and pasted his text from the email-its a picture of a plane taking off with a clear blue sky above it).

You’re tired of your job and sick of your boss. Your co-workers aren’t exactly your favorites these days, either. You need a vacation — and not a stay-cation!

Getting away from home is one of the most important things you can do for your emotional well-being. Travel helps your brain in many ways, not the least of which are creativity, problem-solving, relaxation, trust, patience and humility.

While you’re away, don’t forget the needs of your pets. Hiring a pet sitter will allow your dog, cat, hamster or snake to stay in the comfort of his home while getting all the attention he needs. A pet sitter will feed and water your pet, take him for walks and spend time cuddling and playing with him. Most pet sitters will also send you updates and photos to ease your worry about your best buddy.

Get creative

Travel helps you learn creativity because your mind spends time outside of its normal location and routine. When you are away from home, you learn other ways to live and see how another culture might do things differently than your own. This boosts your mind’s creativity because you become more able to see things in a different way.

Solve it

Problem solving is part of the mix in any travel, but especially if you go overseas. When you have to navigate trains, buses, taxis and even driving in another culture that speaks a different language, you learn really quickly how to solve any problem that comes your way. Remember that time in Germany when you couldn’t find the correct train platform? That was much more difficult than this demanding client. If you can get on the right train in Berlin, you can do anything.

Just relax

Going to places far and wide will also relax your mind, even if you don’t spend much time sitting still. You’ll be too excited about visiting that beautiful 800-year-old cemetery to worry about what’s going on back home. Just taking your mind off of the office will give you the perspective to relax your nervous system a bit.

Trust the process

When you are in an environment where you don’t know the language, don’t know anyone and aren’t sure how to get anywhere, you learn to trust pretty quickly — what other choice do you have? Trust is overcoming anxiety, which is a healthy improvement. It can be very difficult to allow someone else to take control, but in the end, you learn that there are good people in the world who only want to help you.

Be patient

If you’ve ever waited on a tarmac for your plane to take off, you’ve learned patience. Sometimes letting go of control is good for you. You may not want to learn that lesson, but at some point, you will. You’ll learn your place in this huge world of ours, and you’ll experience a sense of humility. You’ll meet new people with very different lives from yours and see that your way of life isn’t the only one. Plus, you’ll make new friends from all over the world.

Get happy

If you want to just get your mood boosted, start planning that trip. Studies have shown that planning for a trip can increase your happiness while you anticipate your adventure. Looking forward to getting outside of your comfort zone might make it hard to concentrate at work, but imagining yourself sitting in a Parisian cafe in front of the Eiffel Tower is enough to put a smile on your face in that pointless meeting. So, start planning!