Adventure travel is perhaps the most fun, rewarding and physically demanding of all the possible types of travel you can do. Not only do you have to overcome the usual difficulties of flying, but you also have to endure the physical hardship of trekking across mountain ranges, swimming through lakes, and hiking in the jungle. It’s not always easy.
But as somebody who is plus-sized, there’s no reason you can’t enjoy the thrill and satisfaction of adventure less than anyone else. You still have the power and ability to get fit, get strong and, most importantly, enjoy the experience.
Here’s how.
Buy Hydration Equipment
No matter where you’re adventuring, you need excellent hydration equipment. When you engage in an activity, you release lots of water into the atmosphere to cool yourself down.
Most quality hydration packs come with refillable bladders (unfortunate term). The bladder sits in an insulated backpack, helping to keep it cool, and a small pipe runs out of the pack, across the shoulder, and onto a convenient location near your chest. All you have to do is hold it up to your mouth and take a swig. Bladders typically have a much higher capacity than bottles and are much more comfortable to carry around on long treks too. If you’re out for the day, choose a three- to five-litre bladder to accommodate all your water needs.
If you’re prone to losing electrolytes through your sweat, then you can buy special electrolyte tablets which dissolve in water. Plop one into your hydration pack’s bladder and get all the water and salts you need for even the most gruelling trips.
Work On Your Stamina
If you’re going on an adventure holiday, it’s likely that you’ll be outside for long periods, hiking, sailing, biking or backpacking from one location to another. Distances between destinations can be long, so you’ll need to work on your stamina before setting off for distant lands.
As a plus-size person, it can be difficult to know where to start when working on endurance, but the best thing to do is usually to ask a personal trainer. Personal trainers often have a wealth of knowledge for how to improve stamina for people who are plus-size in just a few hours a week. What’s more, you can now get a PT course for free, meaning that you don’t have to shell out big money just for a few hours of training. With personal training, you can get the knowledge you need to design a training programme around your particular fitness requirements.
Building stamina takes time. If you’re still several months away from going on your adventure, create a timetable or a plan detailing what you’ll do each week and how far you want to progress. In week one, you may only want to walk a couple of miles. But by the end of week ten, you could aim to have that up to ten miles or more.
Eat Food For Cardiovascular Health
If you’re going on an adventure holiday, you want your cardiovascular system to be in excellent condition so that you can supply all of the tissues in your body with the oxygen they need to function. The cardiovascular system is like many parts of the body: if you don’t use it, it starts to work less efficiently and, eventually, leads to problems.
Exercise is, of course, a great way to improve aerobic fitness. But if you eat certain types of food, you can supercharge your gains. Take blueberries for example. Not only do they taste good, but they contain special chemicals which help to clear out all the gunk in people’s arteries, making them more efficient and work better. The same goes for greens, like kale, spinach, rocket and pak choi. They all contain a pre-cursor to nitric oxide – a chemical which dilates blood vessels and improves blood flow.
Avoid Chafing
If you’re somebody prone to chafing, adventuring can be downright painful. You can quickly develop sores which ruin the rest of the trip or prevent you from getting as far as you want to go.
Several areas of the body are prone to chafing including the crotch, armpits, under-breast area, inner things, and nipples. And, unfortunately, all of these areas also happen to be the most sensitive. You may also experience chafing in parts of the body where there are additional creases or folds.
Before setting off on your adventure, make sure that you buy anti-chafing lubricants. Lubricants ensure that patches of skin slide past each other with low friction instead of rubbing. You can buy anti-chafing lubes from sports stores or online.
It’s also a good idea to pack things that will help you stay dry in regions prone to sweat buildup. Potato-starch, baby powder and corn-starch are all great for absorbing moisture and wicking it away from the skin.
Finally, wear loose-fitting clothes. Tight clothes have a nasty habit of rubbing and can produce uncomfortable sores and callouses – not something you want if you’re planning on a long trip in the wilderness.
Train Your Mind To Accept And Love Challenge
Adventure travel isn’t for the faint of heart. It’s for people with determination and courage and who have faith in their own abilities.
Plus-size people often worry that they won’t have the strength to see through a challenge. But often, these fears are entirely in the mind – they’re not a reflection of physical reality at all.
Changing your state of mind is something that you earn. It’s what happens when you collect small victories, such as completing your first 5k or jumping off the top diving board. Working with a personal trainer can help you achieve milestones and gain more confidence, as can taking part in a class or getting support from people who are going through the same trials as you.
In summary, adventure travel is something that presents unique challenges to plus-size people. However, with a little planning and preparation, nothing is stopping you from enjoying your adventure. The achievement at the end of it will be more than worth the effort.
