The Train Station/

Take it Outside!

Now that spring has sprung, it’s time to trade in your regular indoor workout sessions for some outdoor activity. As the sign in the front window of my studio, The Train Station says : “Ready or not, here comes summer”

Even just a few minutes out in the fresh air can have an immediate effect. You can give your self-esteem a lift, brighten your mood and increase your lifespan. I’m talking about activities like walking around town, gardening, or taking a bike ride. These are simple things that can lead to improvements in both your physical condition and your mental state.

Got a lake, river or creek nearby? Here in Sebastopol the nearby Laguna de Santa Rosa has easily accessible hiking trails. A recent study suggests that the increased benefits of “taking it outside” is especially true if you live near water. “There was a significant increase in people’s self-esteem and mood, particularly when they exercised in the wilderness or by water,” Jo Barton, co-author on the study,observes: “Historically we are drawn to water to survive.” So why is being outdoors so good for you? It’s a natural reaction, according to Barton. “It is in our genetic make up to be at one with nature.”Getting outside for twenty or thirty minutes doesn’t sound like much but short bursts of exercise combined with a good “hit of fresh air” can make all the difference.

On a larger scale, our runaway costs for health care could be dramatically decreased by patients using exercise as a cure. “There is a large potential benefit to individuals, society and to the costs of the health service if all groups of people were to ’self-medicate’ more with green exercise,” she said. In my fifteen years of experience training folks to achieve their fitness goals, I have seen first hand that a just a small amount of exercise can have an incredibly huge effect on a person’s life.

So is it time to stop going to the gym or working out with a personal trainer? Not necessarily… the bottom line is that you have to choose an exercise routine that’s right for you, and if that routine involves a treadmill, an elliptical trainer or an air-conditioned fitness studio, so be it. Even so, you should make an effort to get outside every day, even for a few minutes, … it might do you a world of good!