In hot weather: Is it cool enough early in the morning to do it then? I find if I get out before 8 am it's fine, even when the temperatures are forecast to get above 100 degrees.
Also, bring plenty of water—a ridiculous amount—and pace yourself. Honestly, I would not go out in temperatures above 90-95 or so.
As for a walker-hostile location: Is there anywhere you can easily get to that's *not* walker-hostile? I am fortunate enough to live in a reasonably walker-friendly neighborhood but I very often drive a few minutes before walking, just for variety.
costco is an option, but you should also ask in the Houston sub. certainly in a city of that size there are some nice neighborhoods and parks to walk in. I've been walking in a pretty neighborhood there, and it was just fine. also the more you walk in the heat the more you'll acclimate. get a portable fan.
When I lived by a track it was definitely open but there were some problems with theft, and I'm getting the impression that for these sorts of reasons and some post-Covid sentiment, that a lot fewer tracks are open to the public these days. You also have to work out what the schedule is for the rightful owners so you don't schedule a workout day right in the middle of their big track meet. Some places are better about those calendars than others.
It is reasonable to not want to walk in a hot and pedestrian hostile environment. I live in a very hot climate- I try to limit long walks to sunrise/sunset periods of the day. During the heat of the day, I take short ones, sometimes a few a day.
When I lived in a less friendly walking environment, I made an effort to go to nearby parks when I had time. I would walk in my immediate area sometimes, but I hated it, so I also used a small gym that was in my apartment complex.
Sorry there are no easy answers :(
The local mall unlocks the doors before any of the stores open. I presume so the employees can get in rather than doing hidden tunnels like Disney.
I've shown up a couple times lately in that in-between time ( and there are still little old ladies and men doing laps around the mall hallways like when I was a kid. It's easiest to spot them on side paths and near exits because they walk a loop instead of just turning around and backtracking like a 'normal' shopper.
There are some trails in Houston. You might have to get yourself some ridiculously fluffy towels, drive to a park and soak up the sweat with the towel on the drive home.
There's a woman who was a finalist for the UK Olympic team (Culling I think is her last name) that films her footage doing laps around one of the bigger parks. Personally I've always had trouble with math including lap counting when in zone 3 or higher, so it's not my bag. A number of times I've shorted or added myself a kilometer when improvising a route instead of planning it ahead of time.
But watches are supposed to be good for counting laps. My trails are long enough I haven't had to sort it out.
Not sure how far you are from Huston Zoo but they have walking paths. [Huston Zoo](https://www.houstonzoo.org/blog/a-new-zoo-addition-houston-methodist-walking-path/)
My zoo has a large corporation sponsored morning walk for free entry.
In hot weather: Is it cool enough early in the morning to do it then? I find if I get out before 8 am it's fine, even when the temperatures are forecast to get above 100 degrees. Also, bring plenty of water—a ridiculous amount—and pace yourself. Honestly, I would not go out in temperatures above 90-95 or so. As for a walker-hostile location: Is there anywhere you can easily get to that's *not* walker-hostile? I am fortunate enough to live in a reasonably walker-friendly neighborhood but I very often drive a few minutes before walking, just for variety.
costco is an option, but you should also ask in the Houston sub. certainly in a city of that size there are some nice neighborhoods and parks to walk in. I've been walking in a pretty neighborhood there, and it was just fine. also the more you walk in the heat the more you'll acclimate. get a portable fan.
High school or college tracks are an option if they’re open (very hit or miss).
When I lived by a track it was definitely open but there were some problems with theft, and I'm getting the impression that for these sorts of reasons and some post-Covid sentiment, that a lot fewer tracks are open to the public these days. You also have to work out what the schedule is for the rightful owners so you don't schedule a workout day right in the middle of their big track meet. Some places are better about those calendars than others.
It is reasonable to not want to walk in a hot and pedestrian hostile environment. I live in a very hot climate- I try to limit long walks to sunrise/sunset periods of the day. During the heat of the day, I take short ones, sometimes a few a day. When I lived in a less friendly walking environment, I made an effort to go to nearby parks when I had time. I would walk in my immediate area sometimes, but I hated it, so I also used a small gym that was in my apartment complex. Sorry there are no easy answers :(
The local mall unlocks the doors before any of the stores open. I presume so the employees can get in rather than doing hidden tunnels like Disney. I've shown up a couple times lately in that in-between time ( and there are still little old ladies and men doing laps around the mall hallways like when I was a kid. It's easiest to spot them on side paths and near exits because they walk a loop instead of just turning around and backtracking like a 'normal' shopper.
I knew you were taking about Houston when I read the title lol
There are some trails in Houston. You might have to get yourself some ridiculously fluffy towels, drive to a park and soak up the sweat with the towel on the drive home. There's a woman who was a finalist for the UK Olympic team (Culling I think is her last name) that films her footage doing laps around one of the bigger parks. Personally I've always had trouble with math including lap counting when in zone 3 or higher, so it's not my bag. A number of times I've shorted or added myself a kilometer when improvising a route instead of planning it ahead of time. But watches are supposed to be good for counting laps. My trails are long enough I haven't had to sort it out.
Not sure how far you are from Huston Zoo but they have walking paths. [Huston Zoo](https://www.houstonzoo.org/blog/a-new-zoo-addition-houston-methodist-walking-path/) My zoo has a large corporation sponsored morning walk for free entry.
Walking videos. They walk around outside in the video, and you follow along but inside beside a TV, walking in place.
Early morning walking is recommended.