Heads up – Massive Sports Tech Holiday Deals List is Live!!! The Garmin Fenix 8 is $250 off (even the Fenix 8 Pro is $100 off!), the Apple Watch Ultra 3 is on sale, the Garmin inReach Mini 2 is $249, the GoPro Hero 13 Black, DJI NEO, and a ton of other brands/deals, including Wahoo, Oura, Whoop, Polar, Samsung, Google, and more than 100 sports tech deals here!
I’m DC RAINMAKER…
Here’s how to save!
Wanna save some cash and support the site? These companies help support the site! With Backcountry.com or Competitive Cyclist with either the coupon code DCRAINMAKER for first time users saving 15% on applicable products.
You can also pick-up tons of gear at REI via these links, which is a long-time supporter as well:
Alternatively, for everything else on the planet, simply buy your goods from Amazon via the link below and I get a tiny bit back as an Amazon Associate. No cost to you, easy as pie!
You can use the above link for any Amazon country and it (should) automatically redirect to your local Amazon site.
-
Check out my weekly podcast - with DesFit, which is packed with both gadget and non-gadget goodness!
-
5 Easy Steps To The Site
1
In Depth Product Reviews
You probably stumbled upon here looking for a review of a sports gadget. If you’re trying to decide which unit to buy – check out my in-depth reviews section. Some reviews are over 60 pages long when printed out, with hundreds of photos! I aim to leave no stone unturned.
2
Read My Sports Gadget Recommendations.
Here’s my most recent GPS watch guide here, and cycling GPS computers here. Plus there are smart trainers here, all in these guides cover almost every category of sports gadgets out there. Looking for the equipment I use day-to-day? I also just put together my complete ‘Gear I Use’ equipment list, from swim to bike to run and everything in between (plus a few extra things). And to compliment that, here’s The Girl’s (my wife’s) list. Enjoy, and thanks for stopping by!
3
Have some fun in the travel section.
I travel a fair bit, both for work and for fun. Here’s a bunch of random trip reports and daily trip-logs that I’ve put together and posted. I’ve sorted it all by world geography, in an attempt to make it easy to figure out where I’ve been.
4
My Photography Gear: The Cameras/Drones/Action Cams I Use Daily
The most common question I receive outside of the “what’s the best GPS watch for me” variant, are photography-esq based. So in efforts to combat the amount of emails I need to sort through on a daily basis, I’ve complied this “My Photography Gear” post for your curious minds (including drones & action cams!)! It’s a nice break from the day-to-day sports-tech talk, and I hope you get something out of it!
5
The Swim/Bike/Run Gear I Use List
Many readers stumble into my website in search of information on the latest and greatest sports tech products. But at the end of the day, you might just be wondering “What does Ray use when not testing new products?”. So here is the most up to date list of products I like and fit the bill for me and my training needs best! DC Rainmaker 2024 swim, bike, run, and general gear list. But wait, are you a female and feel like these things might not apply to you? If that’s the case (but certainly not saying my choices aren’t good for women), and you just want to see a different gear junkies “picks”, check out The Girl’s Gear Guide too.
love to see explore new places going on long runs, best way to get to know a new place
I tried to recover, gather with friends, eat good good, and train a little bit…
Handstands, interval runs or stairwells and burpees!
Vacations are the time of short time in between family activities.
Mix it up. Holidays are about doing something different so break the routine and work new muscles.
vacation=beers, burgers & ice cream
Vacation is just another way to say “destination race”!
Being a road bike a ‘normal live’ during vacation I turn into a road runner. Basically as running just needs a pair of shoes. And as I have a jogging stroller I sometimes turn the training into a family event. That might include some ice cream on the way back :)
On vacation these says its all about trying to keep up with my son.
Usually a beach vacation means – very moderate training, increased calories in the form of drink and food, and plenty of sleep!
I just take it easy most of the times.
i’d love to say I maintain on vacation, but I always lazy it up.
Born to run.
I’d do some easy running.
I always try and fit runs in. Love running in new places!
What about no trainning at all? =D
Walking around for sightseeing.
I always try something local I’m not used to do: just to change a bit
Apero and rest are the best ;)
Treadmill running in hotel gym.
one big race, or run and OWS when on the beach
Run and beer!
I just want to chill with my friends in the swimmingpool
Everything is awesome!
I keep running under the sun
i only stop when my watch battery runs out.
I try to stay on schedule but don’t stress if I don’t. After all…..its vacation.
Surf, surf and surf
I mix it up with runs/swims/bikes with whatever I can get in but focus on having fun with the family
depends on the vacation…. many include a race, 50k trail run, etc… otherwise its time off the feet to relax!!
I try to improve my velocity, doing a lot of reps. and skip the lung run
I try to run as much as possible. It’s sometimes a great way to discover new places.
Quick run, maybe a swim
Lots of mountain biking…
After a few years without any vacation, I’m enjoying a bit of off time. For a short while.
I tend to do a bit more on my vacations. Try to get more long bikes in, some more outdoor weather dependent activities.
Intend to keep up with training, but it usually ends up being less than I wanted.
Usually look for a race or at least Stavanger segments.
If I have a target event coming up, I will try to stay on track, but generally, I run as a means to explore the place where I am vacationing.
Find interesting routes or points of interest to explore on runs. Avoid intensity to keep it light and fun.
Keep on with training runs, but eat a lot more.
Doing nothing. Basically I stop for a month, that weakens my muscles, but prepares my head for the next season…hopefully using a brand new Garmin Fenix3!
Every vacation must be planned around at least one race. Non-race training comes as the itinerary allows, but slacking off is ok, not the end of the world.
LOL at 4600+ comments in less than a day. I hope you have a good script to automate winner selection and weed out duplicates. :)
Running + you are your own gym body weight training http://www.marklauren.com.
I often try to keep my weekly mileage the same and I seek out new routes wherever I’m at.
When I’m on vacation, I only do short runs. 3-4 miles is about all the time I can commit away from all of the fun of vacation! I do enjoy running in different places around the world though. I always wish I had a bike to ride!
I still try to get at least three runs a week regardless of where I am — running barefoot on the sand in on Grand Cayman at sunset with light rain was one of my all time highs!
Other than that I do bodyweight exercises: burpees, planks, etc. Apps like Gorilla Workout and 7 Minute Workout are also huge helps.
I like to do destination races so I go on vacation run a race then relax and recover the rest of the time.
a little bit of running by the ocean.
Run and swim
Ride the local hills and eat the local street food.
My vacation work outs usually involve a lot of horizontal exercises. Wouldn’t be vacation without some relaxation. I did enjoy a run in the middle of Uganda one time.
Depends on the vacation. No dice when it is diving vacation on a liveaboard. Only thing to do is rest and enjoy :-)
Hi Ray,
depends on the location but I always run, it is a great way to see new places. If I can, a swim or two in the ocean is always nice.
Tim
Vacation… thats normally what I do. Training can wait so I can spend time with family.
I shift to early morning runs while the family is asleep.
Running + playing with my kids!
On vacation, I do as much running as I can. Usually distance and exploring win out over anything terribly fast or complicated.
maybe some time on the hotel treadmill.
I usually start with the usual training (cycling mostly, some gym training too) but also do one big ride that’s popular in that area. Preferably a big mountain!
Depends, I usually just run when I travel.
just exercising the jaw trying all the local flavors
If there is ocean, free diving. If there are mountains, hiking. If there are craft brew IPAs, “bicep curls”.
I might hike to the chocolate bonbon store.
I keep training but more relax I try to explore new place
Usually I cut back and make vacation my recovery week! Also, for ease, most of my training becomes running, and I usually try to catch up on sleep!
Usually just easy running – always find it’s a nice way to explore a new area while on vacation.
One swim, one run, and cake. Lots of cake.
Vacation time is basically time for short and unfocused runs and a lot of walking.
Vacation usually means shifting from running or cycling to doing lots of walking with heavy lifting. It also means eating a lot of meals you don’t cook yourself.
just quick AM beach runs
Our favorite “active” vacations involve riding our bikes to the train station, loading them on, and heading up the coast. We love the feeling of getting off the train, hopping on our bikes and taking off, while everyone else frantically looks for taxis, buses, or their best friends who forgot to pick them up!
Mostly switch to walking and a bit of hiking – but lugging hefty camera gear – a Canon 5d mark 2 with 3 lenses, a large flash, 2 sets of spare batteries…plus an iPad!! THAT’s a workout, right??
Don’t forget all the yummy food – chewing is exercise, no?
Currently out in Maui on vacation so great timing on the question! I try and maintain my regular runs except for the time of the day I usually run. All have been in the early morning so far to beat the heat of the day.
I generally train less, and try to incorporate something local. So if some place tropical, an open water swim. Or dome place like Bejing, an indoor (pollution free) treadmill run.
I like to fit in running during a trip to get the lay of the land and see sights if I can.
I tend to be able to find more time to run when I am on vacation. I often don’t swim or bike on vacation due to the lack of bike and unknown access to a good place to swim.
My last vacation was at Disney World.I ended up running more than I would of at home. Running late at night was really kind of cool. I got to see at lot of things that you don’t during the day and the parks from the outside with out all of the crowds.
Running near the sea, ending with a swim.
Running. You can pretty much do it anywhere you go.
I’m a swimmer so my vacations are usually near the water, last one was a Western Caribbean cruise, worked out on the boat and long distance swam as I could while at stops.
Vacation becomes total family time with less ‘me’ time. Sometimes can talk a girl into a run, but usually not…so ice cream instead! Haha
I love to explore new cities by running early in the morning while no one is around. It really depends on where I am as to how much running is possible, I’m currently in Central America & some cities its great and there is plenty of places – others not so much.
A great way to find running routes I find is the strava heat map. It really shows you where runners (who use strava) often go running or riding. Really useful
bike, bike, pizza, and bike!
I do my best to get some type of workout each morning when on vacation. Does not matter if I’m in the mountains or at the beach. Mountains means a trail run, beach means running on the sand.
I take holidays to train more, it’s simply what I love doing, my work currently gets in the way of the volume of training I want to do. So when I have time off I’m cycling, swimming, running and exploring. It’s not all about racing but doing it for the love. As a long distance triathlete, climbing cyclist and ultra trail runner a great watch is essential.
Hauling luggage is probably the closest I get to training on vacation. And, of course, the sprint across the terminal to make a connection.
On my recent holidays I’ve taken it easy so that I can recover from niggly injuries.
bike, run, bike run again
I conduct archaeological research in the summer, so I plan to do some trail running in the jungle while avoiding the branches the spider monkeys will be throwing down at me!
I typically reduce mileage, but otherwise still run and swim.
I could only fit in a 5km run on the hotel treadmill last night. Too busy eating.
I love to explore while running on vacation and try to maintain my mileage, but usually hold off on speed/tempo work.
I like to mix my running into my vacations. That way I can also get to see more new places during my workout and don’t put on pounds. Double benefits :-)
I research the best places to run and try to hit a few of them.
If I’m training for a race, I like to stay on my training schedule. Swimming/Biking/Running can be a great way to explore new surroundings. If it’s the off-season, relaxing might take priority over getting in a workout.
Run, hike or stand up paddling!!
I usually plan to wake up early to go for a run or hit the hotel gym, but I never do it and revert to eating ice cream and chocolate bonbons.
Swimmin’ at the beach!
I just got back from Seoul. Ran along the Han. I maintain when on vaca. I try not to schedule vacations when Im in a training cycle.