Spring is in the air and summer is right around the corner. After a cold, long winter of being cooped up inside, it’s time to dust off the sneakers and head outdoors. Here are six reasons why you should ditch the gym and take your workout outside this spring…
1. It’s Finally Warm
Remember the days of single digit temperatures and snowy covered sidewalks? Well, that’s not the case anymore so there’s no reason not to do your cardio outside. Ditch the stuffy gym, and take advantage of the warm weather.
2. Time Saving
We all have busy schedules and it can be difficult finding the time to fit in a workout. Factor in the extra 15 or 20 minutes it takes getting to and from the gym, it can be tempting to skip your workout all together. When you exercise outside, all you need to do is put your sneakers on and run out the door.
3. Avoiding Nasty Germs
Have you ever thought about all the sweaty bodies that have worked out on that piece of equipment or mat before you? The gym can be a breeding ground for bacteria and nasty germs. When you workout in nature, there is no shared equipment or sweaty machines. Exercising outside only helps your overall health and boosts your immune system.
4. Disconnecting from the “Calorie Counting”
All too often we judge the quality of our workouts on “how many calories we’ve burned,” and it can be hard not to when treadmills and ellipticals are constantly flashing the number in our faces. But exercise is not about the number of calories we’ve burned or how much time we’ve spent on the treadmill. Exercise is about moving, feeling good and getting more in tune with our bodies. Workouts should not be measured by a number or time requirement, but by how we feel physically and mentally. Working out in nature removes us from the unhealthy world of numbers and into our intuition.
5. There’s No Comparison
It can be easy to compare yourself to others when you’re in a gym setting. We naturally tend to compare ourselves to what other people are doing or how they look, but that’s not what exercise is about. Working out is about moving and feeling good in your body, not being brought down by the negative self-talk that comes with comparisons. The outdoors is a judgment free zone, there is no intimidation or discomfort.
6. It Just Feels Better
The sunlight, the scenery, the fresh air — it feels good to disconnect from our hectic lives and just be in nature. We spend so much of our day inside studying or working, exercising outdoors gives us the chance to connect with nature. Studies have shown that being outdoors greatly improves mood, energy, and self-esteem. So ditch the gym and get moving outside!
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