Outdoor Workout – Taking Advantage of Warmer Weather

Living in the Midwest has taught me a lot of things. Like how to dress in subzero temperatures (a lesson I wish I didn’t have to learn) and how to sufficiently scrape ice off of my windshield. But perhaps the biggest lesson I’ve learned is to never waste a sunny day. If the sun is out, and it’s above fifty degrees, I will do everything I can to fit in an outdoor workout.

IMPORTANT: always check with your doctor before trying any new exercise or fitness activity. Do NOT attempt to do anything mentioned in this article without checking with your doctor first!

I visit my family in south Texas regularly, and I remember how infuriated I felt the first few times I flew south for a week during winter by how nonchalantly everyone acted when it was beautiful outside. I still feel that way. Seize the beautiful day, people!

When it starts to heat up here, I will do an outdoor workout as often as possible. And I live in the middle of suburbia, so I realize that by taking it outside, I’m also inviting every neighbor to watch me. But its worth it, and if they have time to watch you, might I suggest they ought to be working out right alongside you?

I visited a Crossfit class not too long ago, and I loved it. But I’m already a member at a great gym with great childcare, and I just don’t have that kind of cash to throw around to various fitness establishments. (Why can’t we all just get along and build a gym with barre classes, pilates, yoga, and crossfit all in one? I just don’t understand.) So I took some notes during the class at my local Crossfit, and I attempted an at-home version. This one won’t cost you $120 and you only need your phone, a jump rope, a pair of dumbbells, and a pair of running shoes. Hallelujah for simplicity.

IMPORTANT: always check with your doctor before trying any new exercise or fitness activity. Do NOT attempt to do anything mentioned in this article without checking with your doctor first!

Before you begin your outdoor workout, you should download the Nike Running app on your phone, ipod, or ipad–whatever kind of media device you have that will allow you to. It’s free. It tells you your pace and your mileage (how fast and how far you go), and it even plays your music for you if you want it to. Having this app will immensely aid you during this workout.

This is an AMRAP workout, which is fancy crossfit talk for the fact that you complete all five exercises as a single cycle as many times as possible in a set amount of time. If you’re new at working out, set your timer for 20 minutes and start. If you have more time, you can set it for 30. I like to do 30 minutes, but if you’re feeling particularly strong, do it for as long as you can. Ideally, you should power through these moves quickly enough that by the end of the 30 minute outdoor workout, you could not physically complete another cycle.

I try and motivate myself by thinking thoughts like this: If I can get lost on social media for 30 minutes, I can push my body intensely for 30 minutes too. Heck, if I can push a baby out for 30 minutes… you see where I’m going? You can do this, Momma! You are a heck of a lot stronger than any guy I know just for the baby-birthing process alone.

Basic run-down of my outdoor workout:

1. Jump Rope 100 times. If it’s too hard for your brain to count and jump (no judgement here, I’m not the most coordinated person), then just jump rope for one minute.

2. 30* Push-ups (on your toes or your knees)

3. 30* Squat to shoulder-press: holding a dumbbell in each hand, squat until your knees are at a ninety degree angle with your tush, and explode out of that squat into a standing shoulder press.

4. 30* Plank Jacks: in a plank position, with your shoulders over your hands and your hips in line with your spine, jump your feet out and in (like a jumping jack) for one complete count.

5. Run 200 meters (or on your Nike app, run .12 miles) For me, this looks like running to one stop sign on my road and back to my driveway. Yes, I leave my house while my kids are napping. But I leave the monitor on the driveway on loud, and I can see it and hear it while I run. And .12 miles takes about a minute. Seriously. You can do it.

And that’s the cycle! Do that as many times as possible in your 30 minute outdoor workout. And maybe you’ll end up with a neighborhood fan club by the end. Who knows, you could have people join in eventually! Think of the possibilities!

*If 30 of any of those moves sounds too daunting, then lower it to ten. You know your body and what you have or haven’t been working up to, but the best place to start is somewhere. We all had to start somewhere in the fitness realm, and I believe in you!

Do you have an outdoor workout routine?

Copyright © Charis Freije, Moms of Faith®, All Rights Reserved