I ENJOY flying a lot. It’s all about peace and quiet. I like to put my headphones on, and just chill. As an entrepreneur, it’s an extreme luxury to be able to have some time where I can be out of reach and think about work issues and then come up with creative solutions.


 I’m not a nervous flier. Nothing much bothers me. But my business partner, Julie, who is one of the smartest people I know, is an extremely nervous flier. Most of our flying revolves around visiting new sites, checking up on construction and the like for our company, SoulCycle. We plan on opening about 60 indoor cycling studios in New York, California and London over the next few years.


 Since our company is all about fitness, people expect us to be, well, in shape. But I’ve developed a problem, and I blame it on my business partner. She knows I tell people this, and she thinks it’s hysterical.


 Because Julie is so nervous, we go through a lot of rituals when we fly together. We talk about our itinerary, check in, go through security, buy some magazines, and then she buys every snack food  known to mankind, including jumbo packs of M&M’s, animal crackers, Chex Mix, and anything else that screams salty, high-carb, high-fat junk. She’s like a kid going door to door for Halloween.


The routine is the same every time. The food fest continues once we land, and until we return to the office.


 Apparently, the snack food helps calm Julie, which is wonderful for her. It’s not so great for me. I am one of those unfortunate people who have zero self-control, so I eat everything that she does while we wait for the plane, while we’re on board and when we reach our destination.


I do bring healthy things like carrots and raisins, but they lose their appeal when put up against some tasty junk. I figure that I consume something along the lines of 3,000 extra calories a minute when I’m with her. Just kidding. But it sure seems like it.


 Julie is one of those lucky people who doesn’t pack on pounds. I’m not. She has the metabolism of a little bird. I don’t. So did I gain weight from flying with my business partner? The answer is “you bet,” and there’s something very humiliating about being in the fitness business and having a hard time zipping your pants.


 The madness had to stop. That’s really easier said than done, especially when your seatmate is sharing things that taste a lot better than a carrot.


Since I don’t have a lot of self-control, I devised a plan of sorts to help me combat gaining any more weight because of airport indulgence.


 I speed-walk around the terminal.


 The long narrow hallways are perfect to get up some speed and break a sweat. I may look like a lunatic since I go pretty fast, but so far I haven’t knocked anyone over.


Sometimes, I pretend I’m  trying to catch a flight, and this kind of visualization makes me walk even faster and helps to jump-start my heart rate.


I’ve even roped Julie into walking the terminals, on occasion. It gives us energy and gets us moving, especially before and after a long flight. Unfortunately, it also takes us to parts of the airport in which there are more food choices, and it’s only a matter of time before I’m face-first back in a snack bag.


But the walking has helped. At least I can still zip my pants. Kind of.