Remain Consistent No Matter Where Your Travels Take You

By Alexi Pappi, Garmin Pro
@AlexiPappas

For me, like most professional runners, summer is all about traveling – I’ve been attending events and competitions around the globe with a few weddings thrown in the mix (including my own!). My Forerunner 645 Music is key to keeping me consistent even as my surroundings and time zones change.

Consistency is essential to athletes at any level. Whether you’re an Olympian or you’re just picking up running for the first time, having a routine that you commit to is so helpful for gaining fitness and reaching your goals. As runners, a huge element to consistency is knowing how much we’ve run and how fast we went.

For instance, if you are starting out as a runner, your goal might be to run two more miles each week and build up over time. Then, as you transition into training for your first race, you might start incorporating a quickened pace into your weekly goals. But most people don’t have the luxury of a coach with a stopwatch to keep track of them. Or, if you’re traveling like me, you might be unfamiliar with the trails and running spots in a new place. That’s where Garmin comes in — a faithful and accurate sidekick, always there with the information we need most no matter where in the world we might be.

Here is what my June looked like: I began in Mammoth Lakes, CA, where I trained at 8,000 feet of altitude. Then I flew to New Jersey where I got married! I went from New Jersey to Oregon for a week to get some sea level training in, before going to Arizona to check in with my physio trainer. Then I went from Arizona back to Mammoth Lakes and jet set off to Greece! As you can imagine, this kind of travel and changes in weather, altitude, and running environment makes it challenging to stick to a consistent training schedule. Luckily, my Garmin is my reliable “coach” on the road.

When I travel, I usually run “by feel,” meaning I don’t pay as much attention to my pace as I do to mileage. So, when I’m in a new place, rather than mapping out routes with a complicated app and studying maps, it’s so freeing to just step out of my hotel in whatever situation I happen to be in and run, knowing my faithful Garmin will tell me when I’ve hit my mileage goal for the day. When I do need to know my pace, like during a tough workout, all it takes is a quick glance at my wrist and I’m fully informed.

My best advice for traveling is this: remember that your Garmin is a tool to help you maintain consistency no matter where you are. I’d advise sticking to one “metric” that you remain loyal. For me, it’s mileage. For someone else, it might be pace or even heart rate. Luckily, no matter what your metric for consistency is, your faithful Garmin – your “portable coach” – will be by your side with accurate information at the push of a button.

Happy training this summer, stay consistent, and have fun with wherever your athletic journey takes you!

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