Six Easy Outdoor Exercises to Try This Week

 The days are getting warmer, and the official start to summer is less than a month away, and while some people are working extra hard at the gym in preparation, others can’t stand the idea of being indoors when the weather is this nice out, which is why now is the perfect time to start working out outdoors! Not only will nature make for a better atmosphere, but it may even motivate you to actually want to work out. Also, a study from California Pacific Orthopedic and Sports Medicine found that outdoor exercisers lost an average of 7.43 pounds and 6.17 percent of body fat in eight weeks. How’s that for motivation?

New to outdoor exercising and need some inspiration? Here are a few easy exercises to get you started!

1. Explosive Pull-Ups (quads, biceps, shoulders, back). Find a sturdy branch, playground monkey bars, or similarly sturdy elevated handhold above your head, and explode up from the ground, reaching to grab it. Use your arms to lift your head above the branch/bar and then ease yourself back down. Repeat.

2. Hanging Crunch (abs). Stay holding onto whatever you grabbed to do your explosive pull-ups, with your palms facing forward. Fully extend your arms and bend your knees, bringing them slowly toward your abs, and then release. Exhale as you bring your knees in, and exhale on the release. Repeat.

3. Burpees (arms, chest, quads, glutes, hamstrings, abs). Jump up, and then squat down. Place your hands down on the ground, or mat, and jump out into a plank position. Then, jump your feet back toward your hands and pop up into a standing position. Repeat.

4. Sumo Squats (glutes, inner thigh adductors, quads, hamstrings, hip flexors, calves). Stand with your feet in a wide stance (wider than your hips), with toes turned out. Sit back, like you’re sitting in a chair (chest up!), and then lift back up to standing position. Repeat.

5. Park Bench Dips, Push-Ups and Step-Ups. Three exercises, multiple benefits, one bench.

• Dip (triceps, shoulders, core): Sit on a bench and place your hands on the bench at your sides. Then, slide your butt forward, so that you’re supporting yourself with your hands. Bend your elbows, bringing your upper arms parallel to the ground while keep your lower back close to the bench, and then lift back up to the starting position. Repeat.
• Push-Up (chest, biceps, triceps, shoulders, core): With your feet on the ground and your hands on the bench, do several reps of push-ups. Then, switch it up and do the same thing, but with your feet on the bench, and your hands on the ground.
• Step-Up (abs and arms): Keeping your right foot on a bench, step up and down with your left foot, bringing your leg to your chest. Repeat several times. Then keep your left foot on the bench, and do the same with the right foot to complete the set.

6. Trail Running. Better than neighborhood or park running, trail running makes your body work harder because of the textured, uneven terrain. It makes your run more intense and effective.

Have any other easy outdoor exercise suggestions? Share your ideas in the comments!