I’ve got an 8 hour drive coming up, early tomorrow morning to be exact.  I was wondering if anyone has any ideas on what I can do to incorporate some exercise into the drive - I’m going to be doing most of the driving.  I will also have four passengers.

Any suggestions would be helpful.

Ahhh what about while you sit there, sit straight with great posture, pull in your abdominal muscles while tightening your butt muscles....do that for even like 20 minutes and it is comparable to doing crunches and butt exercises!!!!  When you pull in your core muscles it really helps with the “baby pooch” so they say (something that I am trying to get rid of for sure!!) Have a safe trip!!

I bet I missed you :o( and that I’m misspelling this exercise… but it’s called Kegals?  You know… girl exercises ;o)

Hi SkTeacher,

Oops, I guess I missed your drive out.  If I didn’t, or if there’s a return trip, I’d like to add that it’s important to stop the car every two hours or so and move around.  Stop at a service station and run around the parking lot once or twice, stretch, whatever.  Just make sure you’re moving around.  For one thing, it keeps the body alert.  For another, it helps prevent blood clots (I think).  In any case, sitting down for 8 hours at a stretch is generally a bad idea.

Good luck with the driving!

Cheers,
Julie

Thanks for posting all of your suggestions.  My trip was primarily a shopping excursion so I managed to do a lot of walking at the West Edmonton Mall.

Julie,
I really like the idea of getting the benefits of crunches without really doing crunches - I’ll definitely try this.

Josette,
I have no idea what Kegals (girl exercises) are but one day I will look into it…

Julie,
Running around at a service station is a good idea… but I’m worried about what the locals may think… perhaps I’ll take a short walk or something…

I’m leaving for Alberta on Sunday, this time relocating there for the remainder of the summer (9.5 hour drive), so I’ll be sure to use all of your suggestions… thanks for the great ideas.

T

Wow you have a lot of long drives! Personally (during long drives for me), I just stop about every 30 min to 1 hour at a gas station or a food place and just do some stretching and walk around. Hey you can also do finger exercises!