The Benefits of Outdoor Exercise

Exercise can do wonders for both body and mind; whether at the gym or through circuit work in your backyard. But did you know that exercising outdoors, known as “green exercise”, may even more so?

Outdoor exercise provides natural sunlight which boosts serotonin levels, an important mood-booster hormone. Green exercise also offers endless challenges from varied outdoor terrain.

1. You’ll Burn More Calories

Going outdoors to exercise can boost your energy levels, refresh you, and give you a natural source of vitamin D. Furthermore, due to cleaner air and reduced light pollution levels you’ll be more likely to stick with your workout regime and stay motivated!

Studies have demonstrated that exercising outdoors can help individuals burn an additional 10 percent more calories when compared with treadmill exercise, due to using more muscles for propulsion in outdoor terrain versus being pulled along by the machine on a treadmill. Furthermore, outdoor activities often feature uneven or changing terrain that requires your muscles to work harder to stabilize – this helps your joints avoid injury by giving them time and space to recover without worrying about being out for too long!

When doing high-impact exercises such as running or jumping, exercising on sand may be more suitable than traditional surfaces as it shifts impact away from your heels and more toward the middle of your foot. Furthermore, adding sand into outdoor workouts forces runners to pick up their feet more frequently, changing how they land.

Exercising outside, especially early in the morning, can significantly boost serotonin and dopamine production for better mental health. Sunlight acts as a natural way of secreting these feel-good hormones into your system compared to working out behind a windowpane at a gym. Furthermore, sun exposure helps your body absorb calcium that strengthens teeth and bones as well as providing some much-needed vitamin D – both essential components in keeping skin health intact! In addition, Vitamin A and beta-carotene provide essential skin health benefits too!

2. You’ll Stay Healthy

Outdoor workouts provide multiple health advantages that make them particularly effective. From helping your body move in new ways to relieving stress through fresh air and sunshine, outdoor fitness sessions offer multiple advantages that make them even more desirable than other forms of physical activity.

Research suggests that outdoor exercise may reduce your risk of heart disease and depression by improving blood flow, decreasing anxiety levels, and decreasing cortisol (a stress hormone). Furthermore, physical activity outdoors can help prevent muscle soreness which could otherwise cause injury during exercise and ultimately compromise progress.

Exercise outdoors connects you with nature and allows you to build community connections in your local environment. From running or walking your favorite trail at a park, to meeting up with neighbors for outdoor workouts in your neighborhood or starting weekly walking groups; exercise outside can deepen your connection to life around you and make fitness programs easier to maintain. By adding outdoor exercise into your schedule regularly, it will deepen your wellbeing while making them easier to adhere to.

Outdoor exercise is free! All that’s needed for outdoor workouts is a safe location to exercise, comfortable running or walking shoes and water. Aim for an intensity that challenges but does not become impossible over a prolonged period of time; warm up and cool down appropriately before stretching your muscles before and after exercising; consult a physical therapist if unsure where to begin your new program; if injured use RICE principles to treat yourself immediately

3. You’ll Stay Active

Becoming frustrated with your workouts will be less likely if you exercise outdoors, such as walking through a park or on a beach. Exercising outdoors creates the atmosphere of fun instead of work, which increases motivation to stay active. Engaging friends or family in outdoor exercise routines can further add enjoyment while meeting fitness goals more successfully.

Natural environments also present your body with greater challenges than treadmills do, whether hiking up a mountain, running along a beach or biking through city streets. With ever-evolving terrain requiring more from muscles and forcing you to focus moment by moment – helping prevent anxiety-inducing future or past thoughts from entering into exercise routine.

Nature is also an incredible mood booster; when exercising outdoors, your body is exposed to an abundance of health-promoting chemicals like serotonin and dopamine that activate direct sunlight production of these “happy hormones.” You won’t get this same effect by sitting in front of a window at a gym!

Outdoor fitness sessions can help overcome common barriers to exercising, like lack of time and money for gym memberships. Nature provides plenty of free and convenient spots where you can walk, run, bike or perform other types of resistance training and HIIT exercises – probably within close range from your home or office! Just make sure that sunscreen is worn appropriately as well as taking appropriate safety precautions – warm up before beginning by walking and stretching for about five minutes beforehand!

4. You’ll Feel Better

Exercise can be an excellent way to elevate one’s mood, and studies have revealed that outdoor workouts can further heighten this effect. Exercising outdoors exposes you to natural sunlight which increases production of “happy hormones” such as dopamine and serotonin which work to elevate mood while simultaneously decreasing stress. Exercising outdoors also has the added bonus of lessening emotional and physiological arousal levels making exercise feel less strenuous and more pleasurable.

Outdoor exercise offers another benefit in the form of its diverse landscapes. Exercising outside will allow more muscle groups to be worked than if done solely indoors; hiking and biking provide excellent examples that target leg and back muscles more effectively than just walking on a treadmill would. Furthermore, it can make exercise more fun – encouraging more people to stick with their routines more consistently!

Exercise outdoors offers families a great way to bond while helping children release excess energy and develop an appreciation of nature and its world around them. Families can incorporate outdoor workouts into daily schedules by using chores like gardening, mowing the lawn and raking leaves as workout opportunities.

Out-door exercise also can improve sleep quality. According to studies, physical activity such as walking or jogging outdoors has been shown to regulate circadian rhythms and promote restful restful slumber, especially when done in natural settings such as parks. Thus it’s crucial that we try to spend as much time outdoors engaging with nature through walking/jogging, hiking, mountain biking or mountaineering as often as possible – for instance in your neighborhood, on hiking trails or mountain bike routes nearby.

5. You’ll Stay Connected

Physical activity can be an effective way to lift one’s mood. Exercise releases “happy hormones”, such as dopamine and serotonin, while increasing endorphins that reduce pain and enhance overall wellbeing. But outdoor exercises may enhance these beneficial chemicals even further – according to researchers, exercising under natural sunlight may make workouts seem more pleasurable and less strenuous than doing them indoors.

Working out outdoors also offers you an opportunity to appreciate the scenery and beauty of nature, which can serve as a powerful motivator. Heading to a beach or hiking trail for your workouts is a fantastic way to connect with nature while taking in breathtaking views of water, trees, mountains – plus you get exercise AND socialization all at the same time! Plus if exercising with others you can both exercise AND socialize!

Staying motivated to exercise can be difficult for many. There may be physical, psychological and environmental obstacles preventing people from being active; outdoor exercise can be an excellent way to overcome these hurdles and stay on the right path! Research indicates that people are more likely to stick with an exercise regime if it feels enjoyable; doing it outdoors provides the perfect way to connect with nature while having some outdoor fun!

Adults can find outdoor exercise to be an economical and eco-friendly alternative to gym memberships or expensive at-home fitness equipment. You’ll find free options like running or walking in a park; furthermore, exercising outside helps cut emissions by eliminating travel time to and from a gym! Why not give outdoor exercise a try today?

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