Flying Into February

I started the month with my first business trip of the year which had me flying into February for a flurry of meetings in Palo Alto and a conference in San Diego.

Somewhere a few hundred miles east of SFO

Flying Into February

I usually have an aisle seat, but I chose a window for my cross-country flight so I could get some rest before my long day—it started with a 4:30 am alarm on the east coast and I had 6:30 pm dinner plans on the west coast. When the pilot said we were beginning the approach to SFO, I opened the window shade and was treated to the beautiful view above. As we got closer, I loved seeing the city come into view.

The patterns of these roads look like a labyrinth.

On Tuesday, the first thing I did after getting to the confereece hotel in San Diego was check out the mysterious fitness center. I was pleasantly surprised to find a decent space with several treads, ellipticals, weight machines, free weights, etc.


I think this deserves a few photos on their website, don’t you?

Maybe they should use this one? 😉

The fitness center was in a separate building near the “spa pool.” Since even San Diego did not escape the frigid weather last week, I had to bundle up to trek there from my room at dark o’clock in the morning.

The steam rising off the heated pool into the cold morning air looks mystical.

Weekly Run Down

I had one workout at home before my trip. Then Monday was a travel day. Saturday was a recover-from-my-red-eye-day, but I got in solid hotel gym workouts the days between.

Sunday: LB Strength + 3.5 Tread Miles
My legs felt good after Saturday’s 8 mile run, so I decided to chase 75 miles for January with Hannah’s run. The “advanced beginner” rating mostly means that she calls out “advanced beginner” paces, but I always choose my own paces anyway. She used this class to demonstrate a bit of everything—endurance (an 8 minute steady state block), hills, intervals (2 and 3 minute blocks), and sprints. It was a great class.

Monday: 1 mile walk with Scooby
I chose to set my alarm for 4:30 am so I would have time to walk Scooby before I headed to the airport. My husband could have taken him out, but I really wanted to start my day with some fresh air.

Tuesday: Core + 20 min Upper Body Strength + 3.25 Tread Miles
Tuesday I was at a Westin in Palo Alto. I thought I’d be able to use the Peloton bike, but moments after I took this photo, the gym got really busy. A man beat me to the bike and then a woman hopped on right after him. I snagged a tread and crossed the 75 mile mark.

I was the first one here and even turned on the lights.

These A&S and C&B classes worked well together.

Wednesday: Core + Peloton Ride + ALW + LB Strength
About a week ago UK Peloton bike instructor Leanne Hainsby revealed that she had been diagnosed and treated for breast cancer. There was a push in the Peloton community to have as many people as possible join her first live ride back, which was at 5:30 am PT on Wednesday. I braved the metric-less spin bike in the gym and really enjoyed the class. It looked like over 8K people were in the class. #WeRide4Leanne

A janky water bottle holder is better than no water bottle holder!

Thursday: Core + Flash 15 + 5.0 Tread miles
My focus Thursday was a 45 min tread class, but Jess Sims had a new Flash 15 class that didn’t look too brutal for a pre-run class. Marcel’s class was what she calls “Pop Violence” — a pop playlist with hard programming. This one had tabata speed blocks interspersed with hill “recovery” blocks.

Friday: Core +20 min FB Strength + 3.5 Tread Miles
I don’t usually run on consecutive days, but knew I wouldn’t be running on Saturday, so I figured I could handle a 30 min tread class. This Jess Sims intervals class was more endurance-focused, so it was a good choice. The main workout had 5 blocks of 3 min hard pace/90 sec recovery. (I used my “Half Marathon Pace” from the Matt Wilpers training program.)

Saturday: 30 min Scooby Walk
My flight left San Diego at 9:30 pm PT and arrived in D.C. at 4:50 am ET. If you do the time zone math, you will figure out I barely had 4 hours on the plane and while I’m sure I dozed some, I won’t say I really slept. As soon as I got home, I brushed my teeth, got in my PJs, and went to bed for a few hours. By the time I got up it had warmed up to 25F, so I bundled up and took Scooby out for a walk.


A huge thank you to Deborah and Kim for hosting the Weekly Run Down link up.

Have you taken a red-eye flight?

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21 Responses to Flying Into February

  1. Jenny says:

    I’m glad the mysterious fitness center turned out well! I can’t believe it was cold in SD- I’ve always had the impression that they have the most perfect weather in the country.
    Nice job on getting your workouts in this week! That travel sounds exhausting. I hope you get some nice rest today.

  2. Debbie says:

    What a nice hotel gym! Good for you for fitting your workouts in around your busy work and travel schedule. I bet Scooby was happy to see you when you got home. 🙂

  3. Marcia says:

    Those are some good looking hotel gyms. Too bad you weren’t able to get a turn on the Peloton bike. I took a red eye home from Portland over the summer that left 3.5 hours late (3:30am). That was rough!
    Does Westin still have that program where they provide hotel guests with “rental” workout gear? Back in the day they recruited running ambassadors from the blogging community. I’m not sure how successful that program may have been.

  4. Lots of activity with you with all the travel, too!

    I have taken plenty of red eyes and am SO NOT a fan! I usually have trouble sleeping on planes, but then again, it’s been years . . . which may change this year. 🙂

  5. Wendy says:

    Those hotel gyms are really nice! Were you taking the photo and the guy dashed over to the bike? Good thing you like to run. Sounds like a busy but fun week for you.

  6. Susanne says:

    That’s a nice hotel gym!! Well done getting your workouts done while on your trip, it can be tricky no matter how good the hotel gym is.
    The expression red-eye flight was new to me. I don’t think I’ve done one, I haven’t travelled overnight like that. But I’ve had some really eye-reddening travelling experiences, with delayed flights. I had to spend 6 hours at Schiphol (Amsterdam) once when my flight from Cork was delayed, I had slept maybe 2 hours that night and had planned to sleep on the plane! That day was horrible. When I got home, I sat down on the bed at 6.30 pm, fell asleep with clothes on, and woke up around 9 the next morning.

    • Coco says:

      It makes sense that “red-eye” would be a U.S. term — it’s for flights from the west coast that leave late and arrive early the next morning. It almost could apply to flights from the east coast to Europe, but at least those are longer so you have a bit more time to sleep.

      6 hours in Schippol sounds rough!

  7. Jessie says:

    Busy week Coco! Some nice gym options though. Way to stick with your fitness goals!

  8. Melissa says:

    That’s a great hotel gym and awesome you got to use it!! I feel like my work trips always start with 7 a.m. meetings and go until 10 or 11 p.m. so that I hardly have time to work out before breakfast, etc. Too had the Peloton got snagged right away that day!
    It’s been a while since I took a redeye. They’re always good in theory but I hate how I feel afterwards!

  9. Darlene S. Cardillo says:

    Good job on getting your workouts it’s tough when you travel. I’m a terrible sleeper so I can never sleep on a plane.

    Too bad we will miss each other when you head up north.

  10. You did a great job keeping on top of your workouts while traveling! I’m not much of a gum-goer, but that one looks pretty plush! I seldom am ever to sleep on a plane, no matter the time of day (or night). I’d probably also need a real bed as soon as I got home.

  11. Those hotel gyms look pretty nice! I still don’t know how you keep up your pace with such little sleep! Nice job staying active in a busy work week

  12. Catrina says:

    Yes! Send that gym photo to the Westin and tell them to post it on their website! I’m sure many other travellers would find that very helpful.
    Your discipline in getting all those workouts done while travelling is impressive. How was the conference?

  13. Teresa says:

    Most of the hotels I have been to have nothing really to offer. That looked fabulous, other than the being crowded part. I am impressed you managed to keep up with your workouts with all your traveling.

  14. Jenn says:

    Nice trip! And those gym shots are great! I have never really been in a busy hotel gym, but it’s nice to know they are getting used.

    I was on a red-eye to or from Vegas once upon a time. It wasn’t super fun.

  15. Shathiso says:

    That gym looks so pro! Your photos need to feature on their website AND their front staff need to assure gym-going guests who call that there is indeed a well-equipped gym! LOL.

    Wow – what a turnout for Leanne – that must have meant a lot to her.

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