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Being outdoors offers a wealth of health and wellbeing benefits. Being outside and being active amplifies the possibility for meeting health and fitness goals and really does offer the enjoyment factor. These outdoor activities offer a great way to spend your leisure time actively.
Surfing
Yes really! No, you don’t need to don shades and travel to America in order to catch some waves. We are an island, and we have waves of our own. For those looking to try out some paddleboarding or some actual surfing, Cornwall is known as being a great starter destination. This is also a fun outdoor activity to enjoy with friends and family.
Other Ways to Take Advantage of Our Water
A previously mentioned, here in the UK, we live on a fairly large island. We have beautiful coastlines all around us as well as rivers, streams, canals, reservoirs, lakes and more. As well as providing incredibly scenic areas to walk around and enjoy, why not try out some amateur watersports? What about canoeing or kayaking? What about canal-boating (less active but still very enjoyable and you’re out in the fresh air). There are many different ways to enjoy the water, just make sure you do it safely.
Enjoy Forest Air
The Japanese trend for forest bathing actually boasts a proven scientific basis for boosting the immune system, lifting the mood and much more besides. Why not enjoy your own version of forest bathing by enjoying some time in our own forests. The Forestry Commission website offers a search function for your area where you may find well-maintained forest walks, cycle routes and more. Another great day out, very affordable and educational too.
A Summer Country Fayre
Take advantage of mild, or even sunny UK weather and spend some time at the many country fairs, open air farms, rural village shows and other great outdoor community events. Not only will you be enjoying a day out in the fresh air, you may meet new people, enjoy new experiences, and you’ll most definitely be active, with much walking taking place throughout the day, not to mention the obligatory tug of war events. If you live in a city try to make the effort to travel to nearby green areas for a bit of country fun.
Outdoor Attractions
Less affordable than throwing a picnic in your bag and setting off on a ramble but fun for something different now and again, local attractions are a great way to mix up your outdoor activity time. Visit local open farms, these often involve long walks as well as much of interest to see. During the summer period, maize mazes and similar offer hours of fabulous fun, and are great for those of you who like a challenge. What about archery? Have you ever visited a falconry centre? There are a vast number of outdoor attractions to enjoy during your leisure time rather than falling into the trap of collapsing on the sofa for whole weekends.
Just Walk
Enjoy building up your vitamin D in the sunshine and just walk. Walk around your local area, research more challenging walks elsewhere or even join a local walking club. Nordic walking has become very popular in the UK and is something to consider. If you are looking to inject some adventure into your walking why not look up geocaching? This can be a great fun activity to do alone, with friends or with family, even very little ones. Rock hunting appears to be a popular outdoor activity in many areas now. Local residents paint rocks and hide them in the local area for others to find and re-hide elsewhere. See if your local area offers something like this.
In Summary
However you choose to spend your outdoor activity time, being out in the fresh air offers a long list of benefits. You may not be jogging or running, you may not be lifting weights or doing laps in the swimming pool. What you are doing is choosing to enjoy an altogether happier and healthier lifestyle. Even better, if you are including friends and family in these activities, everyone is benefiting!
Do you enjoy outdoor pursuits? What is your favourite way to enjoy the great outdoors?