Get Out
There are people who like to exercise within the confines of a health club or inside their home. They have the climate controlled and know just the right level and duration of a workout to plug into their machine of choice. They can comfortably watch the television or read a newspaper as their legs move almost without them noticing. There is the obvious reason to get out and exercise but then there is the not so obvious reason which is to be earth friendly. It’s more eco-friendly to get outside and exercise than it is to work out inside. Here’s the latest from Idealbyte.
Wanna fight off waste and weight gain at the same time?
The Bite
There’s a better solution than kicking the treadmill every day. Hang up your gym membership and try getting your exercise outside to give energy and cash waste a what-for, and tackle calories at the same time.
The Benefits
- Beating power waste into submission. Gyms across the country overload on A/C, and – newsflash – most training machines use electricity too.
- Less of a thrashing for your wallet. The average gym membership costs $55 per month, while some people even manage to get paid for walking the streets. Ahem.
- Scoping your territory. Parks and trails offer better scenery than the weight room. There’s a reason why nobody ever talks about the Great Indoors.
Personally Speaking
Toshio joined his roommate for a park-based boot camp on "legs" day – and for the next week walked around like the oldest man alive.
Wanna Try?
- Trails.com – find a hiking trail near you; an annual membership to this website is still cheaper than the gym (14-day free trial, then $50/year).
- Fitness Magazine – instructions for nine simple exercises you can take outside.
- Yoga Journal Pose Finder – you can do these yoga poses at home, in the yard, or at the park.
- Volunteer Match – outdoor volunteering ops, such as removing invasive species from parks or clearing trails, that get you working.
- If 10,000 Biters avoid the treadmill for 15 hours each month, in a year we’ll save enough energy to power a post-workout whirlpool tub for almost 29 years.
- Hong Kong’s California Fitness Center is the first (indoor) gym with exercise bikes that power its lighting