Stuck in the Security Line? Try These Exercises

My assistant is the loneliest person on earth. I travel about four days a week. Last year alone, I logged 140,000 miles in the air, all within the continental United States.

Skip to next paragraph Alex di Suvero for The New York Times

Ricci M. Victorio, vice president of the Rawls Group in California, at a commuter train station in New Jersey. The company helps family-owned or privately held businesses with succession planning.

Like many of my fellow business travelers, I am facing the familiar challenge of middle age. Let's add one more layer to the mix: I'm a woman who is coping with the dreaded M word, menopause. The hormonal swings that began several years ago have added more than a few extra pounds to my once slender frame.

My husband and I joined a local gym on the family plan. We've been members for nearly four years, but as of yet, I've never set foot in the place.

My schedule consists of getting up at 3 on a Monday morning to catch a 6 a.m. flight to some destination in a different time zone. I work with clients on Tuesday, and then catch a flight Tuesday night to go someplace else. I repeat this process Wednesday and Thursday, and get home late Friday.

So how do I squeeze exercise into an already overbooked schedule? I had tried to use the hotel gyms. But that meant that I had to get up at least 45 minutes earlier. It also meant that I had to bring a set of sneakers and sweats in my carry-on suitcase. That whole idea didn't last very long. So I devised a set of exercises for folks on a travel schedule like mine.

I call the first one the ID Jumble. While continuing to advance in the security line, repeatedly move your upper body forward and back. Try also incrementally unzipping your briefcase, removing your laptop and everything else inside, to find your boarding pass and ID.

You'll know you're ready to move on to an advanced level of this exercise when no one behind you is screaming that you are holding up the line. When you are truly adept, you can burn a lot of calories by juggling your steaming hot venti cafe latte and overcoat while checking messages on your Treo as you rummage through your briefcase.

Then there is the tried and true Muscle Man Stair Climb. This is a great exercise when you are boarding a small regional jet. With a suitcase in one hand, a briefcase in the other and a coat over your shoulder, balance the weight on each side of your body. Then lift the bags and take the stairs, rather than using the escalator or elevator. Buck up, and ignore the ripping sound in your triceps and thigh muscles. Don't be ashamed to whimper; it helps burn more calories.

One of my personal favorites is the Window-Seat Toe Touch. I place my briefcase under the seat in front of me. Then I stretch forward, while bending my neck at a seemingly impossible angle to avoid squishing my face into the seat in front of me. Then I remove one item at a time from my briefcase. On one flight, I stretched nearly 75 times before I got everything I needed. To avoid complaints from your seatmates about all that stretching you are doing, simply wear earplugs.

If you pay attention to all of your activities while traveling for business, you'll find something that qualifies as exercise. And if you take advantage of those opportunities, maybe you can lose some weight. I lost a half-pound in the last year. So if you ever see me hoisting my carry-on above my head, please don't try to help me. It's exercise, and I have a few more pounds to lose.

By Ricci M. Victorio, as told to Joan Raymond. E-mail: Joan.Raymond@nytimes.com

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