The Windy City

I have to thank the existence of this blog for my motivation to run while in Chicago last week as admittedly, the idea for writing a post on ‘running while traveling’ preceded the trip itself. In fact, the motivation to run was pre-empted by the notion that if I didn’t, not only would I be disappointed in my lack of discipline, but I would also need to come up with another topic to write about.

Regardless of the reason, I was able to venture out for three runs throughout the trip, each of which highlighted a different approach towards running while traveling:

• Run with a local: A few weeks ago I brought along a colleague visiting from out of town to run one of my usual 5K’s, so when the opportunity arose to run in her hometown, I was keen on the reciprocation. Running someone else’s regular route is fun because you get to run a mile in someone else’s shoes (yes, pun intended). I particularly appreciated her pointing out her favorite landmarks along the way, as I definitely enjoy doing the same when others are running my route.


• Run at the hotel gym: While I’m generally not a fan of treadmill running, I do enjoy checking out the layouts and equipment at various hotel gyms. A few particularly cool ones stand out in my mind, like the hotel I visited in Orlando that featured stationary bikes embedded with video game screens that enabled users to play a Tetris-style game, synchronized with the workout. While the gym at the Chicago Marriott was nothing to write home about, at least the anticipation got me down there. And at the end of the day, a run is a run.


• Run and explore: On the last day of the trip, I had the pleasure of running through downtown Chicago with another colleague of mine. We ran through the upscale shopping district on Michigan Ave, down the picturesque Navy Pier, and then looped back to the hotel. It was a great way to get my bearings and explore a new area that I wouldn’t have had the chance to see otherwise.

My only regret was that I didn’t have a camera compact enough to bring with me on these runs—something I fully plan on addressing before my trips to London and Italy later this month, so stay tuned for more ‘running while traveling’...