Are you getting bored with your current training routine? Are you sick of driving to the gym to work out when the weather is nice? Are you stuck in a fitness rut and looking for new ideas to renew your progress? The warm weather has arrived, so why not take your exercise routine outside?
Let’s be honest. Driving 30 minutes to the gym to walk on the treadmill and lift weights doesn’t make much sense when the weather is nice. Not to mention, he’s been cooped up all winter, bored with his exercise routine, and hasn’t seen any progress in months.
Sit down and get comfortable. I’m going to share with you some ideas that will get you out, interested in training again, and help you experience a level of progress you haven’t seen in years. Interested? I hope you said YES!
In my 10 years in the fitness world, I’ve found that it always comes back to a couple of key points. One: you should push yourself to do more from one training session to the next. Two: we all need regular variety in their training (for psychological and physiological reasons). Today I’m going to talk about the second point and show you how varying your training a bit can help you get back on track. Check out these outdoor workout ideas to add some variety to your routine:
1. Take your weight training outside to mix it up – During the summer months I really enjoy doing my strength training outside. I love taking my weights to my backyard or to the local park. Training with a loved one or a group of dedicated friends is a great way to do it. Some of the training tools that work well for outdoor training are kettlebells (shown in the picture below, it looks like a big bowling ball with a handle), dumbbells (a weighted bat), medicine balls (fun to throw), sled dragging (great for athletes), weight vest workouts, sandbag training (nothing fancy here, just sand in a bag), and good dumbbells.
2. Try some interval training to boost fat loss: See, the “fat burn” zone is a myth. Sure your body uses fat for energy after 30 minutes of continuous exercise at a certain intensity, but sports scientists have shown us that shorter bursts of higher-intensity exercise can be even more effective in lowering the percentage of body fat (ever wonder why sprinters are so skinny without running for 30 minutes straight?). A great way to incorporate interval training into your summer training can be as simple as warming up for 5 to 10 minutes, then alternating 30 seconds of more intense effort with 30 seconds of more moderate effort. You can do this on your mountain bike, road bike, do hill sprints, kayak races, jump rope, track sprints, or even do a bodyweight calisthenics like jumping jacks. Enjoy!
3. Do mini-workouts throughout the day: An easy way to adjust to an outdoor workout is to choose any exercise and take short breaks to exercise outside. You could walk out of your office and perform a set of squats, walking lunges, elevated push-ups, stair jumping steps, or even calf raises. Remember: it’s your total energy expenditure at the end of the day that’s important, not doing it all at once.
4. Do some yard work: The yard is a mess, so you might as well exercise and be productive at the same time. Try stacking wood, raking leaves, building a rock wall, digging a hole (you decide for what), walking with a loaded wheelbarrow, carrying things around the garden on your head, spreading some mulch around your new growing plants. just put in the hole you dug earlier.
5. Enjoy the scenery: Make the world your gym. Commercial gyms have nothing to do with Mother Nature. Get outside and take a walk in the local park, go hiking, kayaking, mountain biking, and hit the beach to run in the sand or jump in the waves. Getting outdoors can be a great way to embrace a fitness lifestyle and add some variety to your current training schedule.
6. Take Obstacle Walks: A great way to add some variety to your routine is to mix in some bodyweight calisthenics like squats, push-ups, and jumping jacks into your summer hikes to increase calorie expenditure and challenge your body. Walking on a treadmill is boring and predictable. Going on an obstacle course through your local park can be so much more enjoyable and outdoor walking “chaos” might just be the right variety you’ve been looking for.
7. Join a summer sports league: Playing sports is a great way to add some variety to your routine and have fun doing it. There are hiking clubs, mountain biking clubs, road cycling clubs, triathlon training clubs, softball leagues, martial arts tournaments, basketball leagues, and more. In fact, I’m participating in a summer basketball league for the first time in years and I can’t wait to start. It’s a great opportunity to get out, make new friends, and engage in physical activity that enhances your life.
There you have it: 7 ideas for taking your fitness training outdoors and incorporating some variety into your program. One thing to consider is going to the gym a couple of days a week and doing your other workouts outside. Mother Nature has given us some great options, so get out there this summer and take advantage, and I’m sure you’ll see renewed progress (and have a lot of fun doing it!).
Train with purpose
Kyle
