Most people know that regular exercise is good for your mental and physical health. It boosts strength, stamina, and mobility, and can reduce stress and improve your focus. No matter your personal health goals, exercising is a great way to stay in shape and boost your overall well-being.
However, if you’re spending all of your time in the gym or exercising indoors, you could be missing out on even greater benefits.
One of the ways to reap larger rewards from exercise is to do it outdoors. Taking your workouts outside can challenge your body in new ways, and boost your mental health even more than the physical activity itself.
The best part? There are plenty of ways to get active outside. You might end up finding your new favorite way to work out. Let’s take a closer look at why exercising outdoors is so great for your physical and mental health and some of the best ways to make the most of outdoor workouts.
A Boost to Your Physical Fitness
Things like lifting weights and running on a treadmill are great, but you might end up experiencing bigger benefits by mixing up your workout routine and exercising outside a few days each week. When you change the terrain of your workout, you’re challenging your body in new and unexpected ways. If you do a lot of running on a treadmill or cycling on a spin bike, you might be burning a lot of calories, but you’re never doing anything different. Jogging or biking on rocky roads or rough terrain can add a completely new element to your workout that will keep you on your toes and allow you to use muscles you would never get to on a machine.
Maybe you don’t have any major fitness goals, but you exercise regularly to maintain your physical health. Exercising outdoors can give your body an even bigger boost. Studies have shown that outdoor workouts can help with things like:
