SheKnows: Survival in 5 Steps: Stay Slim and Keep Sane

 

Lisa Niver on 5 Steps to stay sane at a conference with SheknowsThank you to SheKnows for publishing my article about surviving at a conference!

Going to a conference can test your ability to remain calm. There are options for excess and overwhelm everywhere you look. Just opening the schedule can send some immediately to a panic attack or a xanax. But step away from the pills and drama, I have five suggestions to calm your mind and help your heart.

The most important choice to me is knowing I cannot do everything. I know I will skip things that other people feel are essential because I have to pick myself first. I might miss “the best” lecture or night out but at the end I will feel good about my choices that matched my goals. My most important goals are to eat well and exercise every day to keep the weight off I lost years ago.

1. SCHEDULE YOUR DAY TO MATCH YOUR GOALS:

I plan my day in advance at a conference. I can either change the time I want to set my alarm or choose to arrive at the event later than others. If I am willing to miss sleep, I can be at the earliest sessions. At the last conference, with the time change, I was unwilling to miss sleep so I missed the opening plenary. That was the choice that worked for me.

At another conference at the Mall of America, I chose to miss the closing session. During that time, I returned to my hotel, Hyatt Regency Bloomington, so I could put away my laptop, change my clothes and walk back to meet the bus for the closing party. I did miss a great speaker but I also had on comfortable shoes for the party, knew my belongings were secure, had a great walk through the park nearby and saw a stunning sunset.

2. PLAN FOR FOOD

Eating well can be challenging at a conference or really anywhere. When I eat at a hotel, I often step away from the buffet. After paying for the entire breakfast buffet, it can seem a requirement to eat one thing from every section or everything that is there. I look at the menu and think about what I would eat if I were at home. What is a good simple choice for me? What will keep me going throughout the day. I know if I skip breakfast and rush to the conference, I will feel hungry and not pay attention. I will make choices that I will regret like eating a candy bar or anything that I can find. I often take a banana or apple from breakfast with me so I have a morning snack choice that is healthy. Often there are muffins and cookies as snack and if I do not have a good choice in my bag, I will eat what is there. I recommend keeping small bags of nuts or a box of raisins in your bag. I almost always have a protein luna bar with me so I can pick a snack that is good for me.

3. Working out is a commitment to yourself. Write it in your schedule!

Many people have a list of their appointments. We write down when we are going to the eye doctor, the dentist, our meeting with our supervisor and parent-teacher conferences. Sessions with a personal trainer that cost money often get in the weekly calendar. I have found that during a conference the focus is on the speakers, meetings and events.

I make certain to schedule the time I am going to work out. I often wake up and hula-hoop for twenty minutes while listening to a mediation experience about gratitude from Deepak Chopra and Oprah Winfrey. If I can wear sneakers, I might choose to walk twenty minutes to a conference so I spend time outdoors and get my blood pumping. I often choose to stay at a hotel near a conference instead of at the main hotel so that I am more likely to have a reason to go outdoors and walk. Most hotels have large and often empty fitness centers where you can find top quality exercise equipment. Make the decision to work out. When I work out and choose which sessions to go to carefully at a conference, I feel better and I get more out of my day.

4. Make Connections in Advance

For a recent travel conference, I made many appointments in advance. The conference offered many activities and tours before the conference. I thought about which ones matched my website and would make the best videos. I was able to contact Beth Blair, the author of the upcoming book, “The Unofficial Guide to the Mall of America,” and interview her before and after the tour. It made my video better and I made a new friend.

As part of the conference, there was speed networking. I contacted all of the companies and people in advance. When I could, I made personal connections so that when we met for our allotted eight minutes, it was as fruitful as possible.

5. HAVE FUN

There have been times where I went to a conference and left feeling exhausted, overwhelmed and frustrated. I knew I ate the wrong things, made the wrong choices and did not get much out of it. Now, I carefully choose which events to go to and think about what are my goals. I have the intention to take care of myself before, during and after the experience.

I do go to the evening events but not all of them. I often drink sparkling water at the parties instead of the free alcohol. By the end of the day, I am thirsty and cheap glasses of wine do not solve that. I feel better if I re-hydrate and I can always buy myself a good drink later that I will enjoy more and will not hurt my head in the morning.

There are times when an early night or a massage at the hotel spa are the best ways to end the day. When I stayed at the Hotel Maya in Long Beach, I spent one night at one of the seven fire-pits with my s’mores kit and enjoyed being outdoors, by the water and at my own campfire!

My conference was literally a short walk over the bridge to the convention center and each time I returned to my hotel I felt like I was a world away. Choosing carefully can make all the difference!

Lisa Niver is going for the first time to five conferences in 2016 including Blogher 2016, Travel Media Showcase, The SCUBA Show and TBEX Minneapolis. The Hyatt Regency Bloomington hosted her near the TBEX conference at Mall of America and Hotel Maya Long Beach hosted her for the SCUBA show.

A version of this article first appeared on Sheknows with the title: 5 ways to go hard at a conference and not blow your fitness goals

Lisa Ellen Niver

Lisa Niver is an award-winning travel expert who has explored 102 countries on six continents. This University of Pennsylvania graduate sailed across the seas for seven years with Princess Cruises, Royal Caribbean, and Renaissance Cruises and spent three years backpacking across Asia. Discover her articles in publications from AARP: The Magazine and AAA Explorer to WIRED and Wharton Magazine, as well as her site WeSaidGoTravel. On her award nominated global podcast, Make Your Own Map, Niver has interviewed Deepak Chopra, Olympic medalists, and numerous bestselling authors, and as a journalist has been invited to both the Oscars and the United Nations. For her print and digital stories as well as her television segments, she has been awarded three Southern California Journalism Awards and two National Arts and Entertainment Journalism Awards and been a finalist twenty-two times. Named a #3 travel influencer for 2023, Niver talks travel on broadcast television at KTLA TV Los Angeles, her YouTube channel with over 2 million views, and in her memoir, Brave-ish, One Breakup, Six Continents and Feeling Fearless After Fifty.

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