With gyms being closed the past year, it’s made for creative methods to staying in shape, including exercising outside.
Most restrictions for gyms have been almost lifted worldwide. While this is excellent news, people shouldn’t forget that there are so many benefits to exercising outside. The outdoor green spaces have so much to offer that gyms can’t compete with. Here are 14 benefits as to why it’s great to work out in the fresh air.
Nice change of pace
Even if you choose not to exercise outside every week, once you do decide to do it, it will be a nice change of pace. Switching up your environments for your exercise regimen will help fight off boredom in your routine.
Reduces stress
One of the biggest benefits of working out outside would be the feeling of wellbeing that you’ll get. Breathing in the fresh air and being exposed to Vitamin D is proven to reduce stress and increase relaxation. This also provides mental relief as for some, the gym is considered a chore or punishment while outside often doesn’t receive the same comparison. This on its own will give a lot of mental relief and lack of tension.
Natural antidepressant
Doing an exercise outside is an excellent way to fight off seasonal affective disorder and anxiety. The sunshine gives off Vitamin A and D which both increase serotonin ( a hormone in the brain that affects the mood). While exercise on its own will produce plenty of endorphins, the dark gym just can’t compare to the beautiful sunshine. So imagine combining exercise with the sunny outdoors, it’ll be a great way to combat depression or other negative moods.
Easier to stick to
The great outdoors doesn’t feel like a workout compared to the gym. When visiting a gym, in your surroundings you only see people exercising. This isn’t the case when you exercise outside, you’ll see a little bit of everything and people doing various activities. You’ll forget that you’re even working out because the exposure isn’t so “in your face”. Another way that exercising outside is easier to stick to is the fact that you can easily just walk outside, compared to a gym where you’ll need to drive or walk there.
It’s Free
One of the many huge benefits of exercising outside would be the fact that it’s free. While gyms are great, not everyone can afford the pricey memberships or even the transport cost to get there. Fitness shouldn’t be considered a luxury which is why doing exercise outside is an excellent option. Plus there are so many exercises that you can only do outside that most gyms won’t always offer such as biking, tennis, or rock climbing.
You’ll get variation out of your workouts
This is a great way to break your routine. If you often visit the gym and use the same old equipment, you can easily switch things up by going outside to do your workout.
There’s diversity in your environment
Diversifying your environment is a great way to shake things up in your fitness routine. This is one of the major benefits of doing your exercise outside because you can go wherever you want to work out. You don’t have that option with gyms due to contracts holding people down. The weather is a great way to diversify your environment such as running in the rain.
You’ll get creative
You can get creative. Such as just running up and down some stairs, doing some HIIT while going up a hill, or even wearing a weighted vest while doing a brisk jog. This is the sort of creativity you don’t get to experience at the gym.
You’ll get to be more social
Depending on your community, there may be some free outdoor clubs/running clubs or classes for you to join. These recreational clubs are a great way to make friends and lasting connections. Oftentimes at the gym, people just want to work out and leave so it can be difficult to make buddies with anybody there.
You’ll most likely stimulate all 5 senses
Exercising in the outdoors can help you stimulate all five senses that indoor activities just can’t do. You’ll hear birds chirping, you can smell the fresh air, see the greenery surrounding you, taste the sweat pouring down your face, and touch the ground under you. Stimulating all five senses outside can calm a person. While it’s excellent to have these stimulated outside, you need to be careful with your hearing. Some loud sounds can just be unavoidable depending on your environment. Such as a construction happening at the local park, or thunder happening out of the blue. These things can happen out of nowhere unexpectedly which is why hearing test faqs are good to know in case you need to see an audiologist.
Achieve a great sense of well being
Being one with nature can help with achieving a sense of wellbeing. You’ll feel more alive, plus there’s something so calming about hearing birds sing!
Environmentally friendly
If you think about it, doing exercise outside is far more environmentally friendly. Gyms generate a lot of electricity to power all of the machines. Plus most people need to use some method of transportation (such as a car) to get to the gym. It doesn’t need to be like that for working out in the environment. Besides the street lights, there isn’t any electricity that needs to be generated at a park or any other outdoor space. As for transportation, you can simply just walk outside your home and begin jogging. There isn’t a huge need to use transportation to get to another location, that’s the beauty of outdoor activity.
Your kids or pets can get involved
This is a huge benefit for anyone who has children or pets, such as a dog. You can take your kids to the local park while you do your exercising at the same time, that way they can have some fun while you work up a sweat. If you have a dog that loves to run then this can also be a fun activity for you. Going jogging with your pup will help them blow off some energy while you get to stay in shape.
A chance for more privacy
If you’re wanting privacy at the gym, you may need to arrive at 5 am to get it. Some people just dislike exercising around others and that’s completely understandable. There are plenty of options for exercising outside, such as going to a national park during off-peak days, getting up early enough to go to your local park, or even just working out in your backyard. Even if an area is available to the public, it doesn’t mean anybody will be around.
This was all about exercise outside. I hope you can try a few of these tips!
