How Hotel Fitness Centers Can Help Travelers Stay Consistent with Strength Training

By Luke Carlson July 23, 2026

Travel has become a constant for many of today's professionals, making consistency—not convenience—the biggest challenge to maintaining a training routine. Whether the goal is performance, longevity, or overall wellbeing, the quality of the fitness experience can determine whether a workout happens at all.

In this guest article, Luke Carlson, founder of Discover Strength and Chairman of the Health & Fitness Association, shares how years of frequent travel have shaped his perspective on hotel and commercial fitness spaces. Drawing from his experiences training for marathons while on the road, Luke explores why dependable equipment, thoughtful facility design, and access to strength training are essential for helping exercisers stay consistent, wherever they are.

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As CEO of Discover Strength and an avid marathon runner, I spend a significant portion of my life in hotels. I travel nearly every week—visiting Discover Strength locations across the country, meeting franchise partners, serving on the Health and Fitness Association Board of Directors, and speaking. As I plan my travel, two of my non-negotiables that must be sorted out are: Where will I strength train and where will I run?

As a marathon runner, high-quality treadmills are essential. I love running outside, but during travel, it’s most convenient to be able to start the day on a treadmill (and avoid weather, getting lost in a city, or not having an ideal route). For the last 15 years, I’ve had a preference toward Life Fitness treadmills because they are durable, intuitive, accurate, and provide a consistently excellent running experience. Whether it's an easy recovery run or a hard workout, treadmill quality matters. Last weekend, while preparing for my upcoming marathon, I completed a 13-mile run on a Life Fitness treadmill at the Sheraton Hotel fitness center in Orlando – 5 miles at 7:05 pace followed by 8 miles at 6:40 pace. Last week I performed a 7-mile progression run on a Life Fitness treadmill at the Riggs Hotel in Washington DC prior to an industry lobbying event at the United States Capitol. Of course, I mix this in with running outdoors to explore a great city; the next morning I did an easy run around the Washington Mall. The treadmill allows me to optimize marathon training wherever I am.

My real passion is strength training. Strength training is the most powerful intervention for improving health span, longevity, and performance. This is well articulated in the recent meta-analysis titled Resistance Training and Mortality Risk published in the American Journal of Preventative.

During my travel, I attempt to perform the majority of my strength training workouts at Discover Strength locations as I value being coached through every rep of every set. If I’m not at Discover Strength, I’m at a local club or hotel fitness center and using zoom to get virtually trained by one of my team.

For 30 years I’ve gravitated toward Hammer Strength equipment – so when I’m in a commercial gym, I’ll build my strength workout around Hammer Strength. My strength workout last week was in Washington DC at our Discover Strength location near Georgetown. I did an upper body workout only (as I taper for the marathon) with our exercise physiologist, Noah. The workout involved:

1 set of 6 reps to failure on the Hammer Strength Incline Press

1 set of 6 reps to failure on the Hammer Strength Front Pulldown

1 set of 12 reps of Chest Press

1 set of 12 reps of a seated row

1 set of Overhead Press in which I lifted the weight with both arms and then performed the eccentric with one arm at a time (alternating arms)

I finished with a Hammer Strength Select Biceps Curl utilizing 5 reps of a 10 second concentric and a 10 second eccentric cadence

I trained to failure on each exercise and included some assisted reps, breakdown sets, and some heavy negative reps.

It was an awesome workout. My lower body workout almost always includes a combination of single and multiple joint movements with a few of the staples including the new Hammer Strength Super Squat, Tibia, and Seated Calf (training the anterior tibialis and the soleus is a priority from an injury prevention and performance standpoint).

Luke's experience reinforces a simple truth: when fitness spaces are designed to remove friction, consistency becomes possible. For operators in hospitality, commercial fitness, and beyond, creating reliable, intuitive workout experiences isn't just about amenities. It's about helping people maintain the routines that matter most.

At Life Fitness / Hammer Strength, we design equipment and digital solutions that help operators create dependable, intuitive workout experiences for exercisers wherever their journey takes them.