When most people plan a vacation, they think of relaxation, the chance to trade fast-paced living for a temporarily slower routine, and a blissful period of time with little to no discipline.
For avid race-cationers like Alex Armiento, it’s quite the opposite.
The finance major-turned-fitness connoisseur has been part of the team at the renowned Life Time athletic club for nine years. During that time, his passion for exercise and wellness has flourished, blossoming from a strong interest into a lifestyle.
“It’s not just a gym. It’s a way of life,” Alex told me of Life Time, where he happily works as a general manager.
The athletic club’s wellness-driven, health-conscious approach now goes hand in hand with another fitness phenomenon: the race-cation. With this type of getaway, travelers ditch their beach towels and poolside margaritas for running shoes and plenty of drinking water. The vacation becomes about the race—not about fun in the sun.
As we sat in the Middletown-Red Bank location, Alex—a five-time marathon runner—detailed his inspiring experience with race-cations and what he has witnessed in others as they embark on their fitness and race-cation journeys.
“When you talk about a race-cation, I see a whole population of people traveling for these races, and then spending the weekend in that cool city exploring,” he shared.
As the number of race-cationers has expanded, so have their workout routines. While many athletes still focus on cardio and marathon running, other forms of exercise are also making their mark.
Take the HYROX, which sees participants run one kilometer and complete a workout station, with the pattern repeated eight times. Alex has competed in approximately 15 of these intense competitions, traveling to various cities across the U.S.
“When you look at endurance training in the past, it was very focused on just cardiovascular, right? Marathon runners very rarely lift weights, triathletes don’t lift weights very often,” the fitness enthusiast said.
“Now that’s started to transition, and you see people that are running very fast marathon times but also strength training five days a week, and then doing things like HYROX, that’s a combination of the two. It’s definitely been a transition in the fitness space in the last couple of years.”
Those who champion both cardio and weight training routines—hybrid athletes—are competing all across the globe. And as they continue to race-cation, they build connection and kinship.
“You start to like build this community,” Alex shared before further detailing how he connects with fellow race-cationers while training for marathons.
“The people that I’m reaching out to, to run with, maybe I’ve only met a few times, or I’ve just met through social media, but I know that they’re training for the same thing. And I’ve created relationships with people just through training for things like this, and then traveled with them to these races, so I’m creating new friendships and relationships as a result of this,” he continued.
“I think what’s great about this idea is you start to meet new people who are like-minded like you. And I’ve created so many new relationships with people through HYROXs who I’ve just met maybe once or twice, but we stay in touch through Instagram or social media to check in on each other and see how training’s going and things like that,” added the accomplished athlete, who has run dozens of half-marathons.
“So I think that’s the underrated part of this type of space. It really is a close-knit culture, because you truly don’t know how hard it is to train for these things until you’ve done it, and then you have mutual respect for other people that do it too.”
Alex also shared that his wife and young son have accompanied him on some of his race-cations, thereby making the experience even better.
“When I go do those things, I want my family to be able to come with me,” he shared, adding that they like “making it a vacation after the race so that we can enjoy ourselves and spend that time together.”
He continued, “But then I also get to accomplish something that’s important to me at the same time.”
It seems Life Time—which has also launched its own fitness competition, LT Games—may be the perfect place to train for such races and competitions. When I asked Alex to describe the acclaimed athletic club in one word, he said “community.” He also detailed its family-oriented qualities.
“We have people who come here with their entire families, and they spend five, six, seven hours. I have clients that work from here, their kids go to the Kids Academy, they eat lunch here, they get their haircut here, they go to the pool here.
“I think we’re creating an environment that’s fitness and health-focused, that you can bring your entire family to.”
Although his athletic accolades are already beyond impressive, Alex–who trains two to three times per day– isn’t slowing down any time soon.
After having run marathons in New York City, Chicago, and Jersey City, he has his sights set on Boston in 2026, followed by London and Berlin.
“I’m planning those vacations and that time away specifically around my race schedule,” the seasoned race-cationer explained.
As we wrapped up our conversation, Alex highlighted the importance of a well-rounded wellness routine that includes sufficient sleep, post-workout recovery, and healthy eating.
“That’s why it’s great that Life Time has a sauna, cold plunge, and hot tub. That stuff is just as important as all the training. The biggest thing I’ve seen is not drinking alcohol, eating the right way, and getting good quality sleep. My performance has skyrocketed. And those are just things that I think are important, especially at Life Time.”
And as Alex expressed earlier, it’s not just a gym, but a way of life.
“When I speak to members and clients about how I’m being so successful, again, it’s a lifestyle, it’s not just that I’m training hard,” he emphasized.
“Every decision I’m making is kind of geared towards a goal of mine, and that’s just how I live now.”