Many people feel they’re just too busy to do their daily exercises when traveling. Some justify the non-action by believing all the running around to meet tight schedules, get planes and grab cabs is enough exercise. However, that kind of stressful action isn’t any kind of substitute for regular, fat-fighting, controlled daily workouts.

Another factor that makes exercise even more necessary is typical overeating while traveling. I don’t know about your routine, but when I travel I must confess I go way off my normal, moderate calorie intake. At home, my breakfast consists of a glass of orange juice, and small bowl of hot or cold unsugared cereal with a dash of non-fat soy milk. Maybe 300 calories.

When I’m traveling, I find myself eating breakfasts of eggs, bacon, home fries, all adding up to at least 2,500 calories, more than my normal intake for a whole day. Lunch and dinner are equally loaded with too much food, especially if I’m on an expense account or someone else is paying. Don't ask me why. Maybe it's just a false sense of freedom. Have you been on cruises, to Vegas or other buffet-crazed vacation locations lately? When all-you-can-eat meals are handy, I go so far off my normal eating habits, I gain at least a pound of blubber daily.

Therefore, especially due of overeating, regular exercise while traveling is essential. It isn’t difficult to do it. If your hotel has gym and pool facilities, hit one or both for at least an hour a day. If there’s a treadmill, give it a 20-minute shot. If the weather permits, get out and hike or jog for a half hour at least twice a day. If the hotel gym has the facilities, work on weights and resistance equipment, too.

It’s also essential that you check with your family physician both before and after your journey. Make sure you’re fit enough to continue your daily regimen of exercise while traveling. Also, when you return and have added pounds, get his/her advice on how to gradually subtract them.

Enjoy yourself while traveling, but when you waddle back with your loaded plate after the fifth time at the buffet counter, just remember you must pay for those sins to your waistline. Within hours, you should sweat it all off in the pool, gym, track and/or city streets. And when you return home, it’s back on the old calorie-counting routine, with the overstuffed buffets just a pleasant memory.