When making yoga a natural activity of life, no matter where a person is during the week, it becomes as natural and easy as breathing air or sleeping. However, a routine needs to be put in place first and a mental commitment has to be applied to make a behavior routine, even with yoga.

Maintaining a yoga regimen while on the road is harder than it sounds. While the exercises themselves don’t pose the challenge, it’s the task of staying on track and disciplined. This includes sticking with a schedule, finding the time, looking for a place to practice and adjusting when time zones, locations and appointments cause havoc with one’s plans. As a result, some of the best ways to approach yoga when traveling, is to anticipate those deviations in the plan.  The following 6 steps will help one prepare for yoga on the road!

• Plan out a yoga schedule ahead of time: Along with the rest of the trip- planning its appointments and happenings- time for yoga should be scheduled the same way. Put the time into a calendar, smart phone, note pad or whatever is used for tracking a schedule. Once the time is scheduled “in pen”, people tend to keep their own appointments, making it easier to stay on track.
• Plan out the type of yoga possible: Different traveling conditions are going to allow/demand different types of yoga. Thinking about the options ahead of time makes it easier to plan for what’s available on arrival. If there’s plenty of room and a good floor, a full practice is probable. However, where space is cramped or only a bedroom is available, a personal mat might be a better approach and poses may be limited.
• Practice stretching and poses where possible: Not all yoga needs to be done in a perfect setting. Just like other exercise, yoga while traveling can happen where small opportunities exist in private offices, hotel rooms and hotel exercise rooms. Granted, one might get some funny glances practicing certain poses in public, but when everybody is sitting around on walls, seats and floors waiting for a delayed plane, someone doing yoga stretches isn’t out of the ordinary.
• Always pack necessary equipment: Yoga doesn’t call for much in the way of exercise equipment.  A good personal mat can go a long way for comfort when going through the varied poses and motions. An exercise ball isn’t going to be a likely inclusion in a travel suitcase, but a favorite stretching outfit can easily be packed.
• The pool makes a good option: If the travel hotel has a pool, that often makes a good environment for simple yoga forms while in the water. This can be particularly useful when no other option is available in the hotel, often when sharing a room with a partner and the hotel exercise room is crowded with the weights and cardiovascular equipment.
• Don’t take a break when traveling: The best thing a person can do for yoga when traveling is to just stick with it. Too often trips become an excuse to take a break or fall off the schedule. Avoiding this slip will greatly improve one’s chances of continued yoga and personal improvement.

Travel can be a great disrupter to a person’s ability to stay on track with any exercise. It’s not necessarily an issue that can be avoided. However, it can be managed with a little planning, forethought and some creativity when an opportunity allows.