Well folks, I talked about routine last week and this week was definitely the opposite of that.

I was talking to a couple of co-workers the afternoon before I left for my first work road trip about our feelings about being on-the-road. My thoughts were, in a perfect world, my weekdays would be spent working, going for a good distance run and/or some kind of cross training and then spending the evening at home in my sweats eating a balanced home cooked meal and enjoying some of my favorite television shows with Josh. However, when life gives you lemons (or when I’m out of my routine), you learn to make lemonade.

The first stop of my trip was Delaware and despite not being able to find a good locale to run outside, I managed to get a speed workout done on a hotel treadmill. Impressive, I must say. First, I generally loathe treadmills and second, rarely do I find one that is the perfect size for me. I realize that sounds crazy but I like the front of the treadmill to be a certain height and for there to be enough space for me to store my keys (or in this case a room card), phone, water, and a towel. My last hotel stay before this one was in Hamburg, NY (about 20 miles outside of Buffalo) and there were three treadmills (no weights or any other equipment) in the “fitness center” and only one of them was working. Also, keep in mind, the “fitness center” was in the entrance to the pool, so the room smelled like chlorine. Needless to say, no one was happy that I wanted to run in that room, but I did end up going two miles after forcing one of the windows to open and only giving up because the treadmill was probably older than me and every time I moved, it squeaked.

Anyway, I was impressed that I completed a speed workout on a hotel treadmill. I can’t say the rest of the my trip was that successful in terms of running, but despite eating very unhealthy for the last two days in Atlantic City (yes, that was the last stop of my work trip) and driving for 2.5+ hours today, I did squeeze in over eight miles tonight, thank you daylight savings time! I did have high hopes of running on the Atlantic City boardwalk this morning, but no thank you daylight savings time, I couldn’t get up early enough.

With my first work travel stint under my belt, I can definitely say that I learned a lot personally about my on-the-road routine which will hopefully help me when I kick off fall travel this year in the middle of NYC Marathon training season. Some of the key lessons I learned this weekend was about how to pick a decent hotel (that is not just clean and within travel budget) that gives me the ability to still maintain my training routine:

• A hotel with a fitness that doesn’t charge you an additional fee to use it
• A clean fitness center that has hopefully a modern treadmill in a room with windows, water, and towels
• Or a hotel that is near a place where I can run outside
• A hotel that offers a well-balanced breakfast (and it’s even better if it is already included in your room rate)

My breakfast at an Embassy Suites in Delaware – egg white omelette with spinach, pepper, mushrooms, a little bit of ham and cheese, cantaloupe, a pancake, potatoes, and a cup of coffee

What do you do for a workout / training when you’re away from home?