Think winter means you have to be indoors all the time?
Think again.
I’ve put together this list of 100 outdoor activities that you can do all winter long to keep getting the benefits of getting outside.
Depending on where you live, some of these will be more feasible than others. But don’t let any inclement weather stop you.
Here are 100 ways you can keep active outside in the winter:
1. Go skiing. 2. Try a polar bear swim. 3. If you live somewhere rainy, jump around in mud puddles. 4. Learn to snowboard. 5. Gather some friends and go ice skating. 6. Cross country ski. 7. Go sledding. 8. Take a walk in the rain or snow. 9. Get a pair of shoe shoes and go exploring. 10. Work out outside. 11. Go stand up paddle boarding (just don’t fall in).
“Your sister is in the hospital,” the principal told me, a look of concern on her face.
I remember the day clearly, even now. I was sixteen years old and a sophomore in high school when I got pulled out of class because of my older sister, who was then 27 weeks pregnant with twin boys.
“The babies have to come out. And the doctor isn’t sure if they’ll live.”
Rushing to the hospital, the rest is a blur. Just a few minutes before, my mind had been on Spanish class and the latest teenage boy I had a crush on.
Suddenly, everything had changed: all I cared about was whether my sister, and her not-yet-born baby boys, would survive.
I remember the looks on my sister and brother-in-law’s faces over those next few days. Pure white with more than a hint of ghost. It was not an easy time for our family.
Seven weeks too early, the boys were born, weighing just over two pounds each. But that didn’t relieve anyone’s fears. They were hooked up to a ventilator for what seemed like weeks because their tiny, premie lungs didn’t have the capacity to breathe like normal babies did.
Still, the doctors didn’t know if they were going to make it.
That next year was tough for all of us. I was too scared to hold the boys (soon named Wyatt and Braxton) for fear I’d break them. And since they could have stopped breathing at any moment, they couldn’t be left alone in a room by themselves—even for a moment, for fear they wouldn’t be alive when you returned.
But they kept on fighting for their lives. And eventually, the boys convinced everyone that they were here in this world to stay.
Every year, on New Year’s Eve, millions of people around the world make a list of New Year’s resolutions… commitments they make to better themselves in the year ahead.
Topping the list of the most common resolutions?
Exercise and weight loss.
In fact, nearly 50% of Americans make a New Year’s resolution to lose weight and get in shape in the upcoming year.
And 2013 will be no different.
After all, if you’re like the rest of us, in the last couple of weeks you’ve consumed gobs of Christmas cookies, candy canes, and holiday drinks.
You’re probably feeling that roll around your middle (you know, where you’d abs should be) more than ever right now.
And you’re finally ready to do something about it.
Recently I was walking my dog to our usual park in Bernal Heights, a cute little hilly neighborhood in San Francisco.
We go there almost every day, and to get there, you have to go up a few pretty steep hills—and a long set of fairly long stairs.
On days when I’m sore from the previous day’s workout, or when the wind is blowing hard, I’ll admit that even I find the climb a bit daunting, but I’ve never once stopped to rest and always keep a steady fast pace.
This time, when Rocket and I made our way through the chilly fog up to Bernal hill, a noticeably overweight woman and her little terrier dog were blocking the stairway in the middle.
Bent over and panting from lack of breath, she noticed us approaching and her face turned red from embarrassment.
“We’re just taking our time,” she said between breaths. “Go ahead and pass us.”
We did, and when I looked back after we’d reached the top of the stairs, she was still standing there, a look of misery on her face.
A couple of weeks ago, I was driving home from my Krav Maga class followed by an epic grocery shopping trip (I hadn’t been for a while) when I spotted an elderly man on the sidewalk carrying two Trader Joe’s bags, one in each hand.
At first, I thought he was just walking funny. But on closer look, I realized he was using each bag as a weight, lifting each arm in a bicep curl every time he took a step.
That way, he was not only getting the benefit of walking to and from the grocery store—he also got an arm workout to boot.
Brilliant!
This man truly understood the importance of staying active and incorporating exercise in his everyday life—not just in the gym.
And we all should take a lesson from him.
Because despite how essential it is to do your interval training, your squats, your pull ups and your burpees—it’s equally as important to keep moving on a regular basis.
Let’s face it: life just doesn’t always go as planned.
No matter how hard you may try and control it, something always gets in the way.
And what’s the first thing that gets put on the back burner when something unexpected happens and turns your life upside down?
Your workouts.
You’re too tired, too busy, too stressed. So you stop exercising regularly, start eating like crap, and let all your hard work disappear.
I should know. I’ve been there.
And it’s completely understandable. But you can’t let it happen.
When moving gets in the way
Over the past four years, I’ve moved a total of 8 times. Three of those moves included going thousands of miles (from Portland to Amsterdam, Amsterdam to New York, New York to San Francisco), and four were into temporary housing—which, if you’ve never experienced it, is very unsettling.
And now, my husband and I are thinking of moving again(!)—but this time, we’re trying to buy a house in San Francisco (not an easy feat).
The one thing all these moves have had in common? They have all been very, very, distracting. And they would have all been perfectly good excuses to temporarily abandon my workout routine.
When I was a kid, I never had to worry about my weight.
I could eat all the food I ever wanted, yet despite my rampant sweet tooth, there was never an extra ounce of fat on my skinny, Gumby-like body.
This is true for the majority of kids (or it used to be… childhood obesity rates are at frightenly high levels these days).
Until they reach puberty—or for some kids, college—the word ‘fat’ doesn’t even enter their vocabulary. They can eat as much pizza and ice cream as their hearts desire, and they’ll suffer no noticeable repercussions.
So why is this true? Why don’t kids have to watch their weight, despite their carbohydrate and sugar-filled diets?
Sure, a big factor is their high metabolisms and growing bodies—many of which require so many calories, their appetites can barely keep up.
But the biggest factor in keeping kids slim? Play.
It’s no secret that people are spending more and more time these days indoors.
Just think about your daily routine. How much of it do you spend at your desk… in your car… on the couch?
Probably a lot, if you’re like most people.
But is all this time spent inside actually good for us?
Here’s what getting outdoors can do for you:
It improves your mood.
If you’ve ever been in a terrible mood and decided to go for a walk instead of wallow in your sadness or anger, you probably remember how your misery let up a little after even just five to ten minutes outdoors.
This happens to me with such consistency that I almost always can tell if I’m getting a little crabby, I’ve been inside too long.
It may sound like pure coincidence, but it really helps.
According to a Harvard study (and many others like it), one of the reasons getting outside can have such a positive effect on your state of mind is that light tends to elevate people’s mood, and there’s usually more light available outside than in—even on the darkest of winter days.
What’s more, physical activity has been shown to help people relax and cheer up, so if being outside gets you exercising (even if it’s just a walk), then your mood will lift as a result.