Now that the weather has started improving it’s a great time to try and increase the amount of time you spend outdoors, especially if you’re looking to be more active! The British Heart Foundation recommends doing 30 minutes of activity on at least five days of the week, try adding some of the below activities into your days (remember, every minute counts so don’t worry if you can’t do 30 minutes all at once!);
- Go for a walk (or jog if you’re feeling a little more confident). You can do this anywhere, from parks and woodland to along canals or even on urban streets.
- Get into the habit of going for a walk after dinner, research has shown it can help you digest your food faster.
- Take your children or grandchildren out for a treasure hunt – it can be something as simple as making a list (or bingo card) with things found in nature for the children to find, like trees, certain colour flowers, animals, etc.
- Make a picnic to encourage you to go out for a walk so you can enjoy your picnic in picturesque surroundings.
- Climb up a hill – this one is a sure fire way to get your heartrate up and burn some calories!
- Cycle to work, or for fun with friends and family.
- Play a game in a park or public field – anything like football, rounders or frisbee. You can get the whole family involved.
- Find your nearest outdoor gym – these often have equipment like bikes, cross-trainers and weight apparatus.
- Sign up for a charity run/walk – events like Race for Life, Santa Run or the Overgate Hospice Colour Run can be great fun to do with friends and family. Not only will you be increasing your activity outdoors, but you’re also raising money for a worthy cause.
- Do some gardening – if you’re fortunate enough to have a garden, doing some gardening can help improve your mood and lower stress levels as well as being a nice way to start getting outdoors more.
There are lots of benefits to becoming more active and spending more time outdoors, such as;
- Improved mood.
- You burn more calories than exercising inside because varied terrains and weather will put different demands on your body.
- Improves the health of your heart as well as your overall fitness level.
- Boosts your energy levels.
- Increased activity can help you sleep better at night.
- It is recommended in this country that most people take a vitamin D supplement, getting outdoors will help naturally boost your vitamin D.
- It make’s it easier for you to get to know your local area.