Do you often feel yourself disconnected to your habits while traveling?
Well, you’re not alone! A majority of us feel the same way.
It is difficult to keep up with your old habits once you hit the road. Be it for a short while or a long time, if you have some habits which you cannot do without, be it good or bad, it gives you a tough time all along the way.
There can be a number of different reasons for losing track of your habits. These may include:
- The lack of resources
When you’re traveling, you have to adjust and succumb to circumstances. In such an event, you might face difficulty in finding appropriate food for diet, your favorite cigarettes for smoking and so on.
- Lack of time
Being in a new place, or being on the road and traveling would not allow you to have time enough to nurture certain habits of yours. Don’t feel surprised if you are not finding enough time to meditate or exercise!
- Busy schedule
This is similar to the above point. However, the only difference being that you have a set schedule for your travel which does not have space enough to squeeze in your habits. You might have to leave at 4a.m to catch a flight, and so you would need to skip your jogging session that day. This is pretty normal.
- Others
There may be many other variable reasons which will push you away from your habits during travel.
It is difficult, however, for some to stay without their habits. There are people who won’t call it a morning till they have walked 2 km in the serene environment. There also are people who would find difficulty in adjusting to the food, just because they are being brought and grown up that way.
And this is when you just wish if you could keep your habits going while traveling? Well, fortunately, yes, you can!
Sticking To Your Habits While Traveling
Here are a few quick ways through which you can ensure that you don’t lose track of your habits while traveling.
- Think before you travel
It is essential that you think before you make your travel plans. Planning ahead of traveling will give you a winning edge on time and will help you to stay up with your habits all along the way. Make sure you are planning ahead in a justified manner. Thinking that you will stick to your schedule 100% will only make things worse for you. Rather you can decide how much you can let go to hold on to the maximum. Thus, it will be easy for you during your travel.
- Lower your expectations slightly
Trying to abide by rules and holding on to your habit expectations are a little too tricky when you are traveling. As a result, to make the most out of it, just be careful about what you need to hold on to. Be a little light on yourself and measure how much you can afford to achieve during your travel.
- Don’t let go. Stick to minimum
Say, for example, you have a habit of meditating each day for 15 minutes. In case you are on a travel trip which is pretty hectic just don’t give up on this healthy habit of yours. Manage to find a couple of minutes if 15 minutes seem too difficult and practice meditation every day even in your busy schedule.
- Some habits are difficult to let go
There are some habits which are difficult to let go. Some cravings do not let you sit with ease until you satisfy them. One of the example for such cravings is Smoking. Only a smoker can understand the dilemma when they are in a crowd of people and want to smoke. In such situations, you might choose to go with alternative options which can satisfy your urge to smoke. While traveling E-cigarettes can be used instead of traditional cigarettes as e-cigarette lasts longer which will allow you to enjoy your puff throughout your journey and it is also considered as one of the best alternative to quit smoking. Might you will be able to get rid of your habit with its use. Also, if you get the urge of nicotine, it also gives you the option to choose nicotine strength as per your desire.
- Prioritize the habits you have
Prioritizing your habits and selecting a few important ones to keep up with while letting go of others will help you stay focused while traveling and yet keep up with your original schedule. In case you are traveling for a couple of days, letting go of minor habits is advisable. You can take them up easily after you are back from your trip or you are settled at your current location.
- Compress your habits in short time
After you have prioritized your habits, it is suggested that you make a compressed form of them. This means that you can fit in a couple of habits in a very short span of free time available to you. This will take only a bit of planning and some control over oneself. This is actually a great way to keep up with your habits in general and not having to let go of it any time no matter for how long you are on a trip.
- Set your goals
Having unrealistic goals for your habits will only make things worse for you. You will have to figure out a proper limit for your goals and make sure you abide by it at all times and try to achieve as much as possible. Planning ahead will only make thing better for you in the long run.
- Make your mindset
The most important thing that will help you to stay up with your habits is making up your mind and understanding the fact that you are traveling and that not all luxuries will be available to you at the same time like when you are at home. Thus, you need to prepare yourself to face it and ensure that it does not turn out to be a setback for you. Living up to your own habits and expectations might be somewhat troublesome if you are not prepared for it well in advance.
Over To You
Habits are very difficult to let go even in the long run and thus giving them up due to travel is even more troublesome. However, follow the above-mentioned tips to stay focused. With these tips and with some amount of self-assessment and self-control, you will be able to get a cutting edge over your habits and be able to nurture them, well, even when you are traveling. Some amount of planning and preparation is all you need to get going.
Do let us know how you manage to keep up with your habits when on road in comments!