FITNESS AUTHOR
Emily Effren
DESTINATION FITNESS n From paddling in Iceland to hiking in Peru, learn how destination fitness has changed these Austinites’ lives and how an adventure fitness trip could be your next incredible experience.
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hile many train for local 5Ks, marathons, triathlons and more, some prefer to take their fitness up a notch, or even to another part of the world. This month, learn how one group turned their single trip into a full-time job, what it was like to paddle for a cause in Iceland and even experience the Inca Trail from one of AFM’s very own, Monica Hand. By training, traveling and experiencing another area with others, these Austinites describe what it was like to experience fitness in an unfamiliar, exciting environment.
Running Around the World In 2012, Gabe Steger and Allison Macsas took a trip to Morocco as a getaway. While there, the couple had dinner with a local in the Sahara Desert. Drinking wine
JUNE 2021
and talking under the stars, the topic of running was brought up. As the local shared how he would give water to French runners who would journey to the desert to run, the couple had a “lightbulb moment,” Steger says. What if they could bring runners to Morocco? The couple began to imagine an expedition that allowed runners to experience the area as they ran in one of the most unique places in the world.
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That night, Rogue Expeditions was born. After they returned from their vacation, Macsas approached the owner of Rogue Running and asked if they could advertise a running trip to Morocco. “We immediately had like 22 people sign up. We were like, ‘Okay, this is real,’” Steger says. The following year, Steger and Macsas hosted the 10-day running adventure in Morocco — and it was
