Sounds simple but many people think of vacationing as lounging on a chaise by the ocean sipping a piña colada - day after day after day. However, too much of that lounging can leave you feeling gross and lethargic and not wanting to do much of anything, wasting potential vacation fun. That is why I like to keep activity in play while incorporating plenty of downtime with a cocktail (it is vacation after all).

Last year I vacationed in London and Paris. This seemed to be the quintessential vacation for me because I was in big cities where I walked a ton and even took a hot ballet yoga and barre class. This year however, I explored Ecuador and I’m not going to lie, I felt a bit out of my exercise comfort zone before leaving. “Hmm my fingers and toes turn blue when I make a trip through the produce aisle in Austin, how will I survive hiking a volcano in the winter? Plus I’m like catnip to mosquitos, what will the bugs be like closer to the Amazon on the waterfall hike?”’ Thankfully I surrendered this ridiculous inner banter before leaving and jumped head first into the activities, making this trip one of my favorite vacations.

We went kayaking in the ocean at the Galapagos Islands while nature-sighting penguins, seals, blue-footed boobies, and giant sea turtles. This felt like a Disney movie come to life where the sea life literally was playing with us and trying to show off. I felt like a kid in a candy store and had so much fun I didn’t even feel how hard I was working. My shoulders and arms definitely felt it the next day. Water sports like swimming, snorkeling, kayaking and surfing burn a great deal of calories with plenty of entertainment involved.