HYPE.’s Tips: How To Spice Up Your Outdoor Exercise

By Lauren Pinkney

As per Government guidelines, we’re allowed to go outside for unlimited exercise (isn’t that an apocalyptic sentence!). If you’re starting to find your daily walks or runs a bit samey, here are some things you can do to make them just a little more entertaining:

Tip 1:

If you like to go for the occasional jog,
why don’t you try switching up the type of running you do. Break up your route
into periods of sprinting, and jogging. Or jogging, and walking. Keeping your eye
on the clock will provide your mind something to focus on, and it can make
a 20-minute jog go so much faster. 

If you’re after some more variation, you can include side steps, high knees or lunges. These high-intensity exercises will get different parts of your body moving, and make your workouts much for fun! Win-win!

Tip 2:

Take your phone with you on your walk and try to seek out every
living creature big or small to take a photo of. Taking time to properly notice
all the little creatures living around us can not only do wonders for your
mental well-being but it can make your daily walks a lot more interesting. Afterwards,
share your snaps with your mates, and start a competition for who can take the
best nature photo. Unleash your inner David Attenborough and really go for it!

Tip 3:

If you’re more of an audio person,
tune in with your surroundings while out walking and record any interesting sounds
you hear. What you hear will of course differ depending on where you’re based, but it’s incredible what you can notice when you really pay attention: bird songs, sirens, families playing in their back gardens, dogs, insects, construction works. Focussing your mind on something like this can be a refreshing break from the news or radio. Have fun with it!

Tip 4:

Right, this one is for all the artists out there.
Take a pen and paper, or whatever you can find, and bring it out on your daily walk.
Sketch as many little interesting things as you can. You don’t have to be Van Gogh to do this, it’s for your own entertainment after all. You never know, you might learn a new artistic skill … or you might just have some silly doodles of dogs walking in the park to chuckle at.