Fitness Challenge, Day 95

Yoga on the beach is a wonderful vacation treat, but if you are traveling to a city, you can find outdoor yoga when it is warm out.

In New York City, Bryant Park has outdoor yoga in late spring through summer. And Prospect Park, in Brooklyn offers yoga on summer evenings. Even better than enjoying the opportunity to exercise in a park is that these yoga classes are free. Exhale Spa in the Gansevoort Hotel recently had a free yoga day that was not quite as relaxing; we were in an outdoor plaza, surrounded by traffic, trucks unloading and tourists snapping photos. I am looking forward to my upcoming trip to Dallas, for the Family Travel Conference, where the new Klyde Warren Park will have free yoga classes by The Dallas Yoga Center. Sun salutations to the actual sun. It doesn't get much better than that.

Fitness Challenge: Day 82

My fitness plan for Martha’s Vineyard was to run and bike daily, but Mother Nature had other ideas. It poured one day, so we headed over to the Vineyard Tennis Center, Workout and Spa in Vineyard Haven.

There were lots of small rooms her, one filled with cardio machines, (with their own televisions) one with free weights and another with weight machines.

A lounge overlooking the indoor tennis courts also had cardio machines so you could watch the action below while you exercised.
I spent most of my time in the personal trainer room, open to anyone, where the bosu balls were. I also took the cardio combo class, a high energy, easy to follow cardio workout.
T
he gym had soft towels, clean locker rooms and a very mellow feel.

Spain Vacation

Whether you are looking for an active family vacation, a sightseeing tour or a relaxing beach vacation – or all 3 – Spain is the place.

Spaniards also enjoy a healthy sports culture. Soccer rivals Real Madrid and Barcelona and native tennis player Rafael Nadal have elevated the status of Spanish spectator sports.

Since the Spanish weather
can usually be counted on to be sunny and dry, one way to see the countryside is by a cycling tour. Keep in mind that summer is very hot though; you might want to avoid summer for the most active vacations.

But if you are traveling to Spain in summer, the Spanish weather is conducive to hitting the beach. And if you are in Barcelona, you can get a dose of culture and sand.

Fitness Challenge: Day 81

It is easy to stay fit on a beach vacation. Just walking on the sand is more difficult than a regular walk, and if you run on the beach, you work even harder.

If, like me, you don't swim, you can run in the waves, rent a kayak or bike. Or all of the above.

We biked a lot around Martha's Vineyard, to justify the bike schlep. We have to put a bike rack on our rental car, and pay extra for bikes on the ferry, all to enjoy the flat, paved Martha's Vineyard bike paths.

It was worth it.

The wide paths can easily accommodate 3 across, so if you are riding with your family, you can stay together - and let someone going the other way pass.

Drivers on the island were almost universally respectful. Only one driver, on a cell phone, pulled out without looking to cross the path. But there was plenty of room and we felt very safe.

Fitness Challenge: Day 5

Stolen bikes don't stop the fitness obsessed. My stolen bike was my folding bike, a bike I got so I could ride in a skirt. I still have my mountain bike, which my husband can ride (it's a man's bike) so I borrow my neighbor's bicycle and we ride 38 miles (round trip) to the beach.

We also sign up for the NY Century Bike Tour in September, an annual bike ride around the city that we've done in the past with our kids. There is a family friendly 35 mile option, and realistic 55 and 75 mile rides. The 100 mile ride just starts too early.

Five Summer Getaways Every Kid Should Experience

Our family vacation plans are on hold as we figure out how to pay for college for 2 kids, and keep the third happy.

Luckily, in New York City, you can find lots to do that is free, and takes you away from your regular self.

Go to an Island
No, we are not heading to St. Barth’s or even Cape Cod. But Governors Island has so many free activities that we could head there again and again, and still enjoy ourselves.

We can laze away in a hammock, ride a bike (Bike & Roll even offers free bikes for an hour on Fridays) or splurge on a family surrey ride.
And free ferry rides provide service from Brooklyn and Manhattan to Governors Island.

Go to the Beach
This is not exactly the same as going to an island, as anyone who has tried to swim in the waters off Manhattan (an island) can attest. From our house in Brooklyn, we can take the subway to Coney Island or Brighton Beach, and spend the day at the shore for the cost of a Metrocard swipe ($2.25; free for kids under 44 inches).

We can also ride our bikes to the somewhat less crowded Manhattan Beach (no direct subway access, but you can take a bus there, too, or pay $10 to park). If we are feeling really adventurous, we can bike to the bucolic Rockaways, particularly Breezy Point.

Take in a Game
The boys of summer played baseball and if you don’t live near a major or a minor league baseball stadium, you should take a trip. We can see the Mets and Yankees (both major leagues teams; the Mets, alas, barely) or minor league affiliates, the Staten Island Yankees and Brooklyn Cyclones, again, all just a Metrocard ride away.

Time with the Grandparents
My husband’s mother lives in a house that can accommodate our entire brood, and just down the road, a free pool and tennis court provide entertainment. Yes, we have to get there, but this kind of family vacation, spending time with the older relatives, is invaluable. We also get to see other relatives who live in my husband’s hometown, and see how he spent his boyhood.

Amusement Parks
Even if we can’t afford a trip to Disney World this summer, we can still spend a relatively inexpensive night at a nearby water park or theme park and get our fill of thrill rides and fried dough.