5min read

After a 12 hour night shift, the last thing you want to think about is a workout. Maintaining physical and mental wellness as a nurse or midwife on travel contracts comes down to building a routine that adapts to your environment and supports consistency and enjoyment.

As nurses and midwives, we’re conditioned to prioritise patient care, often at the expense of our own energy, recovery, and long-term wellbeing. In practice, however, sustaining our own health underpins the ability to deliver safe, high-quality care, with workforce wellbeing recognised as a critical factor in clinical performance (Source: ACN). 

The appeal of contract work lies in its flexibility, travel opportunities, and exposure to new communities. However, the same factors combined with the loss of familiar routines can disrupt even the most disciplined habits. Taking a more adaptive approach to movement and integrating it into daily life (outside of the facility) makes physical activity more achievable.

Read on for sustainable tips for your first travel contract and beyond!

RN Caitlin on contract in the Northern Territory

Why Prioritising Wellbeing Is Essential for Sustainable Practice

Caring for others is at the heart of nursing and midwifery, but maintaining your own physical and mental wellbeing is just as critical to delivering safe, consistent care. The demands of the role – long shifts, prolonged standing, manual handling, and emotional load – can take a cumulative toll if not actively managed. 

Healthcare workers face a significantly higher risk of musculoskeletal strain due to the physical demands of clinical work. Research published via the National Library of Medicine indicates that up to 77% of nurses report work-related musculoskeletal pain, commonly linked to patient handling and prolonged standing. For rural and remote healthcare workers, the personal and professional demands can be particularly significant and unique (Source: CRANAplus). At the same time, organisations such as Beyond Blue highlight that regular movement plays a key role in reducing stress and supporting mental wellbeing, which is particularly necessary for high-demand roles like nursing and midwifery. 

In this context, staying active isn’t simply about fitness, but maintaining the energy, resilience and capacity required to consistently deliver safe, high-quality patient care across varying clinical environments. 

RN Archie on contract in Victoria

Use Your Contract Location to Your Advantage

Rather than trying to replicate a gym-based routine, it can be more sustainable to use what is readily available in its novelty. Beach walks, for example, can provide a low-impact workout to support balance and cardiovascular and mental health, while also engaging muscles in a way unlike that of traditional surfaces (Source: Heart Foundation Australia). Inland placements can also offer plenty of opportunities for mountain biking, trail running, and long-distance road cycling. 

When utilising your surroundings creatively, exercise can become less of a chore, which – after a long shift indoors – can be invaluable for a physical and mental reset between shifts. 

Choose Contracts That Align with Your Lifestyle 

If your environment makes it easy to move, you’re far more likely to maintain a routine without forcing it. By aligning your contract with your personal wellbeing goals from the outset, fitness can fit seamlessly into your routine, rather than be something you need to constantly work around. 

Affinity Nursing’s Job Board includes a lifestyle filter that allows you to search for contracts based on proximity to gyms, beaches, and recreational facilities. Whether your preference is early morning ocean swims, evening gym classes, or simply having a national park nearby, selecting a placement that aligns with your lifestyle can make a significant difference. 

Invest in Portable, Lightweight Equipment

For those who need more variety or resistance training, a small (and very worthwhile) investment in portable equipment can go a long way. Given the transient nature of contract work, the key is choosing items that are lightweight, compact, and versatile. 

Here are the five items we’d recommend: 

1. Resistance band: 
2. Skipping rope
3. Pilates ring
4. Yoga mat
5. Massage balls and foam rollers

RN Heather on contract in the Northern Territory

Keep It Simple With Equipment-Free Movement

If you’re not keen on travelling with extra gear, there’s no need to overcomplicate it. Some of the most effective and sustainable fitness routines are built on simplicity, with no membership, setup, or location required. 

• Calisthenics, or bodyweight training, uses your own body for resistance and is one of the most practical ways to maintain strength and endurance while on contract. Movements like squats, lunges, push ups and core work can be adjusted to suit your level and done in even the smallest of spaces. 

• Yoga provides a powerful complement to intensive workouts, supporting flexibility, mobility, and stress reduction. In physically and emotionally demanding roles, even a short session can help reduce tension and improve how you feel day to day. 

Utilise Popular Fitness Apps For Supporting Consistency  

If you feel like you struggle with maintaining consistency, digital fitness apps can be particularly valuable for structure, routine and a sense of continuity, regardless of where you’re based. 

The following apps are popular with our nurses and midwives in Australia: 

• Move With Us: has grown rapidly in recent years because of their comprehensive selection of guided workouts, nutrition support, and community engagement. 
• Strava: Strava remains a favourite within the fitness industry for tracking activities and connecting with the broader community. Track popular routes nearby and even link up with other users in your area! 
• Runna: Runna by Strava features personalised training plans which adapt to your goals and schedule, making it easier to stay consistent with shift work.  
• Sweat: Created by Aussie fitness sensation, Kayla Itsines, Sweat is a now globally renowned fitness app which offers top-rated structured programs for strength training, HIIT, recovery workouts and more. The app has a strong community aspect that can also help maintain motivation while on the go. 
• Headspace and Calm: While not strictly fitness apps, these platforms come highly recommended and are widely used for mindfulness, sleep, and stress management – key components of overall wellbeing, particularly for managing fatigue and cognitive load. 

RN Maddie on contract in Western Australia

Find Your Community, Wherever You Are  

Fitness can be deeply social and psychological. For this reason, one of the quickest ways to stay motivated in a new region is to connect with others who share similar goals. Local fitness groups such as run clubs and community bootcamps can provide both structure and a sense of belonging. Hop on social media to explore local communities and groups ahead of time to see which events and meet ups may be available should the mood take you. 

Stay connected to other fellow nurses and midwives with Affinity Nursing’s Facebook group to search the existing community posts, to help you get prepared and feel part of a community, regardless of where you are.

Building a Strong, Sustainable Lifestyle

Maintaining a fitness routine while on contract is about more than physical health. It’s about creating a lifestyle that supports your energy, resilience, and overall wellbeing. 

Contract nursing naturally requires a high level of adaptability, and your approach to fitness should reflect that if necessary. Rather than attempting to replicate your routine at home, the focus shifts to building one that integrates with your environment, roster, and physical capacity. The most sustainable routines are those that fit easily into your environment, your roster, and your energy levels, and doesn’t need to be complicated. 

Small, consistent actions build momentum over time and are far more effective than rigid plans that are difficult to maintain. Remember, even low volumes of regular movement have been shown to support both physical and mental health outcomes (Source: Beyond Blue). 

Often, the simplest approach is the one that lasts. When you remove the pressure to over-optimise, fitness becomes something that fits naturally into your day rather than something you have to force. 

Supporting clinician wellbeing is essential to sustaining a high-performing workforce. With the right placement, tools, and mindset, maintaining your fitness becomes a practical and achievable part of contract life, wherever your career takes you. 

Reach your personal and professional goals sooner with Affinity Nursing today. 

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