Holidays do something funny to all our good intentions.
The routine that finally felt solid? Gone. The gym? A continent away. And somewhere between the late breakfasts and the third ice cream of the day, a little voice starts up: you’re undoing everything. You should be doing something.
I know that voice well. I’m writing this from the middle of a long family stretch away from home — kids underfoot, no equipment, days that look nothing like my normal ones. So let me say the thing I wish someone had said to me years ago.
You do not need to maintain your whole routine to stay strong. And you definitely don’t need to earn your holiday.
The all-or-nothing trap
Here’s where most of us go wrong on holiday. We can’t do the full session, the proper plan, the hour we’re used to — so we do nothing at all. Then “nothing” stretches into a week, then two, and by the time we get home we feel like we’re starting from scratch.
But strength doesn’t vanish in two weeks. What actually trips us up isn’t the missed workouts — it’s the all-or-nothing thinking around them. The belief that if it isn’t the full thing, it doesn’t count.
It counts. A little, done often, keeps you feeling like yourself. That’s the whole game on holiday.
What actually keeps you strong away from home
You need far less than you think. A holiday body stays strong on the basics — and most of them don’t look like “exercise” at all.
- Move most days, even briefly. Ten or fifteen minutes of bodyweight work — squats, lunges, push-ups, a plank — is plenty to keep your muscles switched on. No gym required.
- Walk everywhere. Explore on foot. Take the long way. Holidays are secretly fantastic for this.
- Let real life be the workout. Carrying kids, hauling beach bags, swimming, the long walk back uphill — that’s load, that’s strength, that all counts.
- Anchor it to something you already do. A few squats before your morning coffee, a stretch while the kids are in the pool. Attach movement to the day rather than fighting the day for it.
- Then actually rest. Holidays are for recovery too. Sleeping in, slow mornings, doing nothing — that’s not falling off. That’s part of being strong for the long run.
Drop the guilt — it’s not the price of a holiday
Movement isn’t a punishment for the ice cream. You don’t have to “make up for” anything.
When you move on holiday, do it because it makes you feel good — clearer, looser, more like yourself — not because you’re trying to cancel out a meal. That shift, from earning to enjoying, is the one that actually lasts long after the holiday’s over.
(If the food side is on your mind too, I wrote separately about how to eat well on holiday when life is already full — same spirit, no rules, no guilt.)
Strength lives here too
This is the whole idea, really. Real strength was never built in perfect conditions — and a holiday, with its broken routine and its no-gym, kids-everywhere chaos, is just another version of the messy real life it has to fit into.
A little movement, most days, with zero guilt. That’s not a compromise. That’s what sustainable actually looks like.
Want something simple to follow while you’re away? My Strong in the Messy guide is a 6-week home workout you can do anywhere — no gym, no equipment, made for exactly these no-routine, real-life stretches. Pack it in your bag and go.
Daniëlle van der Leest
Women’s Strength & Wellbeing Coach | Founder of ActiveWomen | Mum of 3
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