There are those who go on vacation and take a break from working out. They decide in advance that this will be their break from their normal routine and they will kick back and take a vacation from running.
I am not that person.
Amen.
Not because I don’t enjoy my time off. That couldn’t be farther from the truth. You see, running is FUN for me. I LIKE to run. It’s not punishment or a means to an end. It’s what I do to relax, to feel good, to wake up, to meditate, to work sh*t out. It’s ME.
When I go on vacation or to someplace new, I love to go out and explore my new surroundings with my handy-dandy Kinvaras and the brightest clothes I own.
More often than not, it’s pink. Pink is my signature color.
Sure, you can sit by the pool all day and drink mojitos. But you can be active, too, and not feel like total crap when you get home!a
- Ask a local runner if there’s a great place to lace up your kicks.
- Run barefoot on the beach at dawn/sunrise/low tide. It really doesn’t get any better than that.
- Make your own triathlon: go for a run in the early part of the day, swim at the beach/pool, go for a bike ride around town later.
- Explore your vacation city on your feet on an easy out-and-back run.
- Check and see if there’s a local race while you’re in town. Nothing crazy but how fun is a 5K in a small town with all the kiddos along the course? The cutest.
Seen on my run: a 1 mile hill back to my sister’s house. Torturous but beautiful.
If I hadn’t woken up early to run down this massive hill, I wouldn’t have the bragging rights to say I ran up it at the end of my run. Bragging rights > calf soreness. Boom.
Do yourself a favor, just pack your running shoes and a pair of shorts. Tuck them in your bag in case you have an opportunity to run in a beautiful or interesting or new place. And enjoy the run.
Now go out and run.
