I was recently in Aruba for a family vacation, and unfortunately, that meant succumbing to the temptation of eating delicious (yet unfortunately bad for you) foods that my little brother and sister and cousins surrounded me with for six days straight. But hey, sometimes we all need some greasy French fries and chicken fingers in our lives! However, in completely ignored my diet, I felt the need to keep up my workout routine. But when I realized the hotel I was staying at did not have a gym, I hit the beach!

Ok so now I totally have an excuse to go to the beach as much as possible this summer because running on the beach is my new favorite thing.

Like running outside as opposed to on a treadmill, I feel that a run goes faster when you have things to take in. And being on the beach, by the water makes running even more peaceful and enjoyable.

There is actually a good amount of debate over beach running. Some say that the soft surface of the sand is beneficial in terms of avoiding joint problems that you may develop if you aren’t careful when running on a treadmill or outside on a hard surface; however others say the uneven and sometimes unexpected change in surface that results on a beach could be dangerous and leave more room for injury. I'm going to have to agree with the pro-beach runners because I definitely observed less tightness when stretching after my runs; although if you are going to run on the beach, just be careful, watch where you are going, and be more aware of your surroundings (you don't want to run over a crab or slip on a jellyfish!). I know people that run without sneakers, and I've tried both running with and without them; however I feel that when I'm not wearing anything on my feet I'm too paranoid about stepping on a sharp shell...so I'd recommend keeping your shoes on.

And the best part about all of this is you are still getting sun, spending time on the beach, and if it gets too hot, the ocean is right there to cool you down!

-Ashley Johncola