Revamp Your Workout: Get Out of the Gym and Into the Outdoors

Working out has become an American pastime for a number of reasons. Gyms are popping up all over the place and flocks of men and women are seen pouring into them morning and night. People want to look great, feel great, excel at a sport, participate in a body building competition and some simply enjoy the feeling of challenging themselves. Whatever your reason for working out, it's time to take the workout outside of the gym and into the outdoors. There are a number of reasons why getting out of the gym is beneficial. Consider the following points to revamping your fitness from the gym to the outside world.

Train for Your Life - Can you push your own body weight? Can you pull your own body weight? Can you run for your life? Have you ever considered those three components as being crucial in your life? Everyone should have the strength and conditioning training to be able to or come close to being able to complete all three of those components. What if you fell and needed to push yourself off of the floor or pull yourself up to reach the phone if you couldn't stand? Have you ever encountered an emergency where you needed to help pull someone over or out of something such as water? Do you have the strength? Push ups, pull ups, running and even jogging in intervals are three of the easiest exercises to be able to perform outside of a gym. Add in squats and lunges and not only are you conditioning the legs which will help assist in any of those situations but you've also got a full body conditioning program with only five exercises. Use a row bar at a park for pull ups, practice push ups with one hand elevated on a step to simulate pushing your body off of an uneven surface and incorporate squats and lunges. Then hit the road or the trails for your running or interval work. These workouts are not only functional but can be done anywhere. Your workout can change from the park to your backyard or out on the beach. Mixing it up will challenge you physically and keep you mentally in the game by providing new scenery.

Balance and Coordination - As we age, we tend to eliminate activities that challenge our balance and coordination. Unfortunately, in this case, as we get older we start thinking about the consequences of our actions. For example, going snow skiing could possibly end in a broken bone or joint issue. Hiking could result in a slip and fall. Surfing could potentially end in a water injury or marine life incident. All of these thoughts lead to omissions of activities that once not only provided a great source of fun and fitness but also an excellent avenue for balance training and coordination. It is crucial to have activities in your life that include uneven surfaces, hand eye coordination and movement patterns in all different directions keep your mind thinking and your muscles engaged. Not to mention that most outdoor fitness options use your whole body in the activity which not only uses more muscles but also burns more calories. No more standing around lifting a 15 lb dumb bell! Continuing to challenge balance and coordination must also be done in order to aid in the aging process. Growing old gracefully means putting some time and effort into your physical body to keep it just as sound as your mental state. Your brain is challenged by outdoor activities much more so because activities on non finished surfaces cause you to think harder about foot placement, engage the core to stay balanced and ignite a myriad of smaller muscle groups to assist every move. So not only will these activities help you get fitter, they'll also help you think smarter.

Motivation and Fresh Air - Yes, motivation and fresh air are huge factors in getting out of the gym. Get up, get going and get into the sunshine! Working out in a park or on the beach can be much more motivating than counting steps on the treadmill as well as the minutes. Join a fitness boot camp in a park, a running club or hit the golf course. Enjoy your surroundings as much as you enjoy the activity. Activities that are fun to do will keep you coming back for more. Mix fitness with fun and socialization and you have a killer combo. Plus, motivation from others such as in a running club or tennis league will keep you accountable.

To implement your new outdoor fitness program, make a plan each week. Schedule yourself for a full body workout at the park, commit to the weekly boot camp, take a surf lesson or join your local golf group. If at first working out in the outdoors seems odd, start adding in workouts gradually and find your favorite workout areas and activities.