It’s a lot more common for people to exercise when travelling today, but a couple of decades ago people thought I was nuts to take my running gear along on vacation. You’re on vacation! Take a break! Running is such a hardwired habit that this seemed the same as telling me to take a break from brushing my teeth while while travelling. Unthinkable!

Things have definitely changed. On a previous tag along trip with Steve to Boston, we were lucky enough to stay at the stylish Hotel Marlowe in Cambridge, which is close to a lovely running trail along the Charles River. The hotel provided running maps and twice a week you could sign up to go on a morning run with the hotel’s management. Upon return from a run, the doorman greeted me with a towel and a bottle of water. Wow!

Here are my top 5 reasons to run when travelling:

 

  1. See things you wouldn’t otherwise – When you’re running on the streets and through local parks, you see and experience things you wouldn’t if you were driving or simply heading off to sightsee. Our best running experience was in New York’s Central Park at 6:30 a.m. The park is closed to vehicular traffic at that hour and while hundreds of runners jog along the walking paths, teams of elite cyclists whiz by on the park’s roadways. It’s absolutely exhilarating! This was a total surprise discovery and a very memorable experience.
reasons to run when travelling

This run near Höfn in Iceland was a magical experience.

  1. Balance those extra calories you’re likely consuming – Okay, this is an obvious one, but starting your day with a run while you’re on vacation allows you to ingest some extra calories without bringing extra pounds on your body home with you.
  1. Get great action shots – You can only take so many photos of you or your travel companion standing in of the local sights. Way more interesting are running shots in front of iconic locations. There’s something extraordinary about the ordinary image of a runner against a famous backdrop.
reasons to run when travelling

This 6:30 a.m. run allowed us to get a crowd-free shot of Trevi Fountain in Rome.

  1. Feel like a local – I love the feeling of fitting in with the locals in the city I’m visiting. Passing other runners in a park or along a river path takes me out of tourist mode and lets me imagine that I’m living somewhere else.
  1. It keeps you energized – Some travel days are filled with endless walking, but there are also days of long car or train rides or a lengthy layover in an airport. Starting your day with a run makes this down time more manageable if you’re normally a high-energy person.

Tip: You can find local North American running routes of various lengths at MapMyRun. This community has helped us find the best routes to run in unfamiliar locations a number of times.

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