Whether you are travelling for business or pleasure, you need to make sure self-care is taken seriously. It can be too easy to let things slip, especially if you are a frequent traveller.

Travelling, even for work, gives you the chance to experience many new experiences and cultures. However, if you neglect self-care you may find yourself less than productive at best, and completely burnt out at worst. Therefore, it’s essential that you still look after yourself and complete self-care as you would when you are at home. We look at some of the reasons that self-care is so important when you travel.

Travel Has A Physical Toll On You

There is no denying that travelling can have a physical toll on your health. Regardless of whether you are walking, driving, getting on a plane, or having someone drive you, busy schedules and different cultural norms can leave you feeling drained. When you sit for extended periods it can lead to bad circulation and posture. Not to mention the early or late starts and carrying your luggage.

When you are on your journey you need to:

• Keep Hydrated: Make sure you drink plenty of water; either take a water bottle with you (and fill it after customs) or double up on the plane. Hydration salts are also a handy item for your carry on.
• Remember to Stretch: It’s a good idea to stretch when you have been sitting for a long time. If you are driving it might be worth taking a break halfway and having a quick stretch.
• Eat Healthy: Now, a big part of travelling is about indulging in new foods, but it’s a good idea to bring some healthy food, from nuts to fruit, on the road with you (just be aware of any security or bio-security restrictions).

Travel Can Disturb Your Sleep

This does go without saying, however, it is worth mentioning. When you grab a plane or train you may end up travelling either late at night or in the early hours. This gets your sleep patterns off track right from the get-go of your trip. On top of this, you also have the added element of time differences. They can be considerable, especially if you travel long-distance and these can send your sleep pattern completely out of whack and have you lacking sleep for weeks even after you return.

To help try:

• Stick to a Sleep Routine: Although it might be difficult, try to stick to a routine as much as you can. Calculate the time in your destination and try to sleep according to that time to mitigate jet jetlag.
• Create a Peaceful Atmosphere: it might be worth taking a travel black-out-blind with you, or a sleep mask. Earplugs are a must on planes, as are noise-reduction headphones.
• Limit Caffeine & Alcohol: Although it might be nice to indulge in these, they can make your sleep even worse, especially when you’re jet lagged.

Looking After Your Hygiene

When you travel, it can be really easy to let your personal hygiene and care slip, especially if you find yourself running around on your trip or travelling for a long time. Remember to take time to relax, grab a shower, and make yourself feel refreshed. Dye your hair with low maintenance hair colors before you travel, pack all the necessities for washing so you can grab a shower as soon as you arrive, learn how to do minimal makeup that still looks great, and pack small aftershaves/perfumes so you can still smell great.

Stick To Healthy Eating

Yes, a big part of travel is about trying new foods and enjoying a meal or two out, however, that doesn’t mean you can’t still involve healthy eating. It is important that you still make good diet choices when you travel so you can prevent yourself from feeling stodgy or lethargic.

Try these simple steps:

• Keeping Things in Moderation: Enjoy the food but don’t overindulge and overeat, you don’t need to try everything.
• Have a Varied Diet: try new things that may be unhealthy but balance them out by making sure you still get a balanced plate of food that includes healthy vegetables, fruit, and proteins .
• Research: If you are unsure about what is available in your location do some research first. Find out what is available and look at things like how they cater to any dietary requirements.
• Cook For yourself: This is a great way of making sure you are still eating well when travelling. It works great if you are travelling long term too. It can even help to keep your food bill down to cook yourself so consider looking for accommodation with self-catering facilities.

Look After Your Emotional And Mental Wellbeing

It can be extremely stressful to travel, there is no doubt about that. You are trying to stay on time, keep to a plan, and discover new places while still meeting work requirements, and it can be a little overwhelming. You need to find ways to keep yourself calm and to de-stress.

• Stay connected: Talking to your family or friends about your travels can help to take the pressure off. If your flight is delayed let your family know and have a chat with them while you wait. Can’t find your hotel? Have a giggle about it with your friends and see if they can help at all. You will feel like your problems are less of an issue if you try to make ease of them.
• Plan Your Downtime: It can be far too tempting to pack your time with action and have no time for rest. Yes, you want to see as much as possible or achieve as much as possible on a business trip. However, it is important to have a rest and take some time to recuperate. You will find that you enjoy sightseeing much more if you give yourself time to relax too.
• Take Your Time: Sometimes travel is going to be overwhelming and stressful, take some time, take deep breaths, and think about the positives rather than the negatives.

Have A Digital Detox

If you have ever felt like you could do with a digital detox then travel gives you the perfect opportunity to do this. Apart from letting people know that you are safe and well, you could give yourself a complete break from the digital world. Try:

• Setting Boundaries: Let your family and friends know when you will be in touch or how they can contact you, this way they won’t worry when they can’t reach you straightaway. Set yourself restrictions on when you are allowed to check your emails or socials too. Maybe an hour in the evening.
• Focus on Your Current Environment: If you are too consumed by your tech then you might miss all the wonderful things in your new surroundings. You want to enjoy the moment when you travel and you aren’t going to do that if you are consumed by your technology all the time.
• Completely Unplug: Not everyone enjoys doing this as they feel too lost. However, you might be surprised by how much of a difference it makes when you completely unplug from the technical world when you travel. You will experience more, see more, and learn more. Give it a try, even if it is only for a few days at a time.

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