I’ve enjoyed following this thread! Here are a few anecdotes/suggestions from specific trips I’ve taken in the past …
Think about adjustments you might need to make for the environment you are visiting. I was on a trip to Mexico City two weeks ago and I found that I was logging 2-3x more steps per day than I usually do, so I paid attention to extra flexibility and intensity when doing my workouts. My cousin and I rented city bikes one of the days; they were a lot slower than my road bike, but we had a few good Z1 rides. Since Mexico City is at 7500 feet, I also had to make adjustments for running at that altitude.
I work at an in-residence camp at George Mason during the summers, so I take my trainer with me to do short rides as I’m able. The schedule is quite packed, but I can usually fit in 20-30 minutes most mornings, which is nice for consistency when the rest of my schedule is different than normal. That might be a good option for some folks if they are driving rather than flying.
Other than that, I scope out gyms/hotels with gyms and find USMS programs. I come from a family of triathletes, so we do family runs and rides when we go on vacation. Some of my family members have become triathletes because they were encouraged by the rest of us to try it out, so asking colleagues to join you might surprise you or even inspire someone new to give the sport a shot.
Finally, I try to consider how other activities might be a partial replacement for my workouts. My grandmother lives in Maine and there aren’t any pools around, plus the water is really cold, so we will often go kayaking since we can’t swim. There is also a high ropes course nearby, and my siblings and I have used that as a flexibility and strength-building workout. One of my excursions in Mexico was climbing pyramids at Teotihuacan, and that was such a good strength-building workout that my legs were sore for a few days!
I feel like these examples make my life seem more glamorous than it actually is — most days you’ll find me teaching high school and struggling to get enough sleep, I promise!
