Vacation Running

Running while on vacation.

Taking a vacation does not mean that you have to take a break from your training.  I can only speak for myself, but when on I'm on vacation I normally don’t stick to my diet.  I eat a little too much, I have a second helping of ice cream and I may have an adult beverage, or two…well maybe three.  And with all that relaxing, it’s temping to take a break from our marathon training.  But we don’t have to give up on our run.  23 hours of relaxing…and 1 hour of running can keep your training on track.

But how to sneak in that 1 hour on the road or trail?  Here are some ideas that have worked for us.

On shorter weekend trips we plan our outings around a race.  The extra intense workout that comes with a race environment will make up for the extra helping of BBQ.  And the vacation race bling will be an extra vacation goodie.

Get up and sneak in an early morning run, while the rest of the family sleeps you’ll be banging out the miles while the sun rises.  Some of the most pleasant, quit and safest runs have come when the rest of the world, streets or campgrounds are still sleep.  If you time it right…you can get back to your family with your miles in and breakfast ready and waiting on the table.

Plan one of your site seeing days to run the town you’re visiting.  One of the best ways to see a city is to run it’s streets.  Map out a safe route along the boardwalk, shopping or near the famous sites and you can run from store to store, site to site or coffee shop to coffee shop.  With the right route mapped out you may see things the average tourist never gets to witness.

Going on vacation is no reason to take a vacation from your training or your running.  Being creative will allow you to get in the miles and explore some new routes along the way.

What vacations run to you remember the most?