OUTDOOR JOY

Summer is now in full swing! I remember as a child how much July meant to me. For one, my birthday falls right in the middle, followed by a family trip somewhere, usually to Cape Cod. We would get ice cream, go to drive-in movies, play mini-golf, hit the lakes and beaches, hike by waterfalls, picnic, grill and swim in my aunt and uncle’s pool. Notice the theme?

Being outside so much seems to increase our positive vibes and make us feel healthy and strong. That’s what summer embodies: getting out and enjoying the one true season that allows us to stay outside and put down the electronics. In the article “Wellness Without Walls,” finding different ways to keep fit by engaging with the outdoors offers a renewed outlook on exercise. Rather than staring at walls and mirrors, you’re “smelling the flowers and hearing everything around you.” When we’re walking with our heads in our phones, we miss little bits of nature at every step.

My mother always said, “notice” when something in the great outdoors moved her, whether it was the way a tree swayed in the wind, the sound of waves crashing or the zooming noise of hummingbirds whizzing by our heads. Our boys are noticing and taking things outside this time of year…our oldest grabs a basketball and shoots hoops, our youngest and I discovered ‘rail riding,’ which has us pedaling a 2- or 4-seat rider along repurposed train tracks with views of lakes, woods, streams and rivers. He finally puts his phone on silent. Think of it as exercise with a view.  

And the best part of the summer is reconnecting, slowing down, putting the phones and iPads away, jumping into the waves and laughing together. Grabbing a kayak, testing your balance on a SUP board or just floating and focusing on your breathing in the water helps recalibrate your body and mind as you head back into the four walls of work and life with renewed energy.

Grab your yoga mat from the closet, find a patch of grass, ditch the treadmill for a hike in the woods and put your phone on silent so you can hear the birds. I promise you will be feeling those outdoors vibes for a long time to come.