Why I workout outdoors?
When I was a mother of preschoolers (3. Under the age 4) I was horrified at a simple gesture my eldest daughter made. She popped on the scale and asked if she was fat? "What??" This was totally caught by being in the locker rooms at a gym. The little ladies and guys that come up after us are listening and mimicking everything we do (the good and the bad). I thankfully found a running partner and traded sleep for a good workout. Tag-team parenting when I couldn't have a babysitter.
Life is different now. I could just jump to a gym not carrying the little ones in tow. But, my attitude is so different. Surrounded by the nature, I am drawn into a peace that is not mandated by the mirrors in a gym. I can hear, smell, and experience life as it happens. Not watching TV that is removed. Being engaged in the natural world, I not only get a workout to promote a healthy body, but I can see the delicate handiwork of nature. For example, the snow crystals that sparkle when my headlight illuminates the new snow that transforms a snow burm into a bed of diamonds. The last rosehip that hangs from a frozen vine reminding us that seasons change. The crunch of leaves that swish and applaud your running while the sweet and sour smell of cranberries make your mouth pucker. I'm encouraged to see the sprigs of bright yellow/green that perservers through the April days.
Gyms can't offer me that.
I just invite a friend along on my adventures because life is better together and I do need the push.
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