Four top tips for healthier business trips

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You wake up at five in the morning to catch a flight, which whizzes you across several time zones. At your destination, you’re faced with a day full of meetings, followed by a formal dinner with a client. Business travel may bring welcome variety to working life, but unfortunately that often comes with added stress and downright exhaustion.

Linda Ekholm, Head of Wellbeing Experiences at Hotel St. George in Helsinki, shares her top tips for feeling fabulous and shaking off stress while traveling for work.

1. Remember rest and recovery

Ekholm highlights the importance of getting enough good quality sleep during business trips, as it helps you hold on to healthy habits. Familiar routines will tell your brain it’s time to go to bed, despite the time difference.

Caffeinated drinks should ideally be limited to the morning and early afternoon, while shutting down electronic devices a couple of hours before turning in for the day will calm the mind. What’s more, having your main meal in the early evening ensures your sleep won’t be disturbed by digestion during the night. A relaxing massage or treatment relaxes the body in readiness for sleep.

• The cosy rooms of Hotel St. George have a calming effect, as they’ve been specifically designing for relaxation.
• The luxurious DUX beds ensure sweet slumbers, guaranteed to boost your energy levels for back to back meetings.
• You can adjust the room temperature to your liking, and darkening curtains will keep out the sunlight.
• St. George Care spa invites you to take a well-deserved break from your hectic schedule.

2. Healthy food helps stay fresh

- Try to maintain your normal eating habits during a business trip. If you eat regularly throughout the day, you’re less likely to succumb to unhealthy treats, Ekholm says.

Forward planning is key to eating well while traveling for work, as it may be tricky to find healthy options at restaurants.

Research what’s available at hotels and in the local area. It’s also a good idea to pack a supply of nourishing snacks, like fruit and sugar-free energy bars, to maintain steady blood sugar levels throughout the day. To feel at your best, swap coffee for water and minimise your intake of alcohol. 

• Restaurant Wintergarden and St. George Bakery all offer wholesome local food made of fresh ingredients.
• The minibar has been reimagined to contain snacks that are genuinely good for you, and the St. George breakfast is bursting with local flavors.
• The famous cocktail menu at Wintergarden boasts tempting virgin cocktails, too.

3. Keep training while travelling

According to Ekholm, a high-quality gym is one of the most important aspects of a business traveller’s hotel. It makes sense to nip into the gym whenever you have the chance, as even a little bit of exercise goes a long way. Jogging is a fantastic way to explore your destination, and taking the stairs instead of the lift will do wonders to your daily step count.

• Hotel St. George’s Playground gym, designed by Hintsa Performance, is open 24 hours a day, giving busy travellers the opportunity to keep fit in stunning surroundings.
• Morning yoga in the beautiful Wintergarden will sate your soul and refresh your body.
• Hotel rooms come with a map of Helsinki’s best jogging routes, a resistance band, and an in-room exercise programme.
• To make more of your urban stroll, borrow Nordic walking sticks from St. George Care spa.

4. Seize each moment of calm

- Relax between working by reading, exercising or even getting a massage, Ekholm suggests.

In between meetings, there’s always enough time to get up and move about, or walk up and down the stairs for a while. Even a quick stroll around the block gives you a moment for yourself and allows you to gather your thoughts. The effects of a short, 25-minute massage will last for the rest of the day.

A business trip should not be all about performance.

Give yourself permission to relax and enjoy a good book, art, or your favourite cocktail.

• Explore the massage options at the spa, which range from classic to deep tissue massage.
• Enjoy the art collection and myriad stories at Hotel St. George, where you’ll find books everywhere from hotel rooms to public spaces.
• For sheer hedonism, head on over to Wintergarden and treat yourself to a cocktail.

Published: 28.1.2020
Photos: Mureena, Tiiu Kaitalo, Tuomas Lindgren, Esa Laukkanen