Between the smell of sweat, the fluorescent lights, and the ubiquitous television screens, April Herring never connected with going to the gym.
Instead, she runs, bikes, walks, plays tennis, pickleball and – anything to get outdoor exercise as often as possible.
“Fresh air, sunshine, the variety of trees as the seasons change,” said Herring, an administrator at Carroll Community College in northern Maryland. “There’s something about the energetic healing quality of nature.”
The health benefits of spending time in nature have long been established, and exercise in general, of course, improves physical and mental well-being.
Combine the two and you double what adults need to stay healthy, said Debbie Rhea, a professor of kinesiology at Texas Christian University.
“We have to leave. We have to be active,” said Rhea. “If we’re going to live long lives, that’s what it’s all about.”
Starting an outdoor routine, however, may not be as easy as signing up for another gym. Here’s how to get started.
If you haven’t been physically active in a while, think about the activities you did years ago, suggested Connie Sciolino, founder of Alpine Training Center in Boulder, Colorado, a gym that trains athletes for outdoor mountain sports.
People who enjoy occasional walking or cycling should begin building an aerobic base by taking increasingly longer walks or rides. Once you’re comfortably in the 35- to 45-minute range, start adding some intensity to build strength, she said.
“If running is their main activity, I would send them to the bleachers or run up stairs, either in a sprint format or put a backpack on their back,” she said.
Rhea warned against returning to a sport you once enjoyed without preparing your body for proper movement.
“Let’s say they’re in their 30s, 40s, 50s and they haven’t run and now they try to run around those bases,” she said. “They’ll probably hurt an Achilles or a hamstring or something if they do something too fast.”
A side benefit of exercising outdoors is that there’s no need to buy expensive equipment, trainers say.
After warming up with your favorite aerobic activity, add strength training using your body weight and what is available in the built environment. This could be finding a picnic table or a low wall and placing your hands shoulder-width apart to do incline push-ups. Then turn around, place your hands on the same surface and lower your body to do dips that work your triceps.
To work your legs, add squats with your feet shoulder-width apart, looking straight ahead and your back straight. Add lunges by taking giant steps and bending into the space between your feet. For your core, find a patch of grass to do sit-ups.
Start with eight to 10 reps, or no more than you feel comfortable with, and add sets with short breaks as you get stronger.
For a more complete workout, find a park or trail with outdoor fitness equipment, which is installed in a third of park agencies, according to the National Recreation and Park Association. Equipment can range from basic pull-up bars to bench presses and gym-style rowing machines.
And many cities, including Chicago, San Antonio and Atlanta, offer free group classes outdoors.
When it inevitably rains or the weather turns cold, it’s helpful to keep an old axiom in mind: There’s no such thing as bad weather, just bad clothes.
“If we have clothes for whatever temperatures we’re in, we’re more likely to go out and be active when we need to,” Rhea said.
She suggested investing in a breathable jacket and a lightweight hat with a brim to wear on sunny or rainy days.
Coach Katie Higginbotham recommended having a contingency plan for adverse weather conditions. Choose an area with surfaces that don’t get slippery when wet or somewhere with some shelter from trees so you don’t get pelted by rain.
On those days, having a regular exercise buddy really helps, said Higginbotham, who oversees quality control for TrainFitness, a private training company based in the United Kingdom.
“If you know someone is waiting for you, it’s hard to say no at the last minute,” she said.
Finally, it helps to set a goal, whether it’s training for a 5K charity walk or a triathlon. If you’re working on something, it keeps you motivated to keep going, Sciolino said.
“When you have this day marked on your calendar, you have to do these things or die out there,” she said.
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EDITOR’S NOTE: Albert Stumm writes about food, travel and wellness. Find his work at
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