The Benefits of Outdoor Activities & Water Sports for Heath & Wellbeing

There’s a lot we can do to keep our body and mind healthy. From getting enough sleep, eating healthy and staying active, we have a lot of choices when it comes to caring for our bodies. If improving your physical wellbeing is a priority, finding new and interesting ways to keep moving can be challenging. If you’re used to the regular routine of healthy eating and a gym workout, you may want to try throwing in a bit of outdoor activity and watersports to keep things interesting.

The benefits of outdoor activities and watersports are endless! Spending time outside, whether you’re aiming for a new fitness goal, or just taking a simple hike, can help improve your mental health and get your blood pumping. Below are just a few of the benefits you can expect to get when you step outside and enjoy the outdoors.

How Outdoor Activities & Watersports Can Help You

If you’re wrapped up in the daily grind, you probably spend most of your time indoors. There are a variety of reasons you may want to step outside and enjoy a bit of fresh air. Even if you aren’t the type to spend hours a week in the gym or doing workouts, the added health benefits of being outdoors are impressive. Here are a few things you can expect to improve when you decide to head outdoors for a bit every day.

• Help your lungs – If you live in heavily populated areas, sometimes being outdoors can be more healthy for your respiratory health than staying indoors.
• It’s free – unless you’re visiting private areas, it won’t require a gym membership to get active.
• Vitamin D – The best way to get healthy doses of vitamin D is by stepping out into the sunlight!
• It can help with memory – Participating in outdoor activities may just help improve your short term memory. Studies have shown that the biggest benefit to short term and working memory comes from nature hikes and getting away from urban areas.
• You’ll exercise longer – If you’re already outside, doing something you love and enjoying the scenery, chances are good you’ll spend just a little bit longer being active. This is especially true if you’re doing something you love, be it water sports, hiking, or any other variety of enjoyable outdoor activities.
• Fight depression & anxiety – Some studies have shown that being closer to nature can help improve states of depression and anxiety. Being close to water has shown to improve these areas of mental health even more.
• It’ll make you happier – Spending time in the sun can improve your happiness. After all, the increase in vitamin D, less anxiety, boosted activity time and improvements in other mental health areas, choosing outdoor activities over indoor ones may just help you be a bit happier.

Finding outdoor activities and watersports that improve your health won’t be an impossible task. In fact, most of us have some hobbies or interests that can take us outside. The benefits of being active outdoors are endless, and you never know, you may just find a new hobby to take a serious interest in. If you happen to find an outdoor activity that interests you, make sure you go about it in the best possible way. Read up, take lessons if need be, and do yourself a favor and invest in quality equipment.

If you’re planning on trekking through the forest or mountains on foot, be sure you equip yourself with quality hiking gear. Taking up horseback riding? You probably want to find qualified instructors to help you on your equestrian journey. Hitting the lake? Why not jump in and enjoy some wild swimming or take up a new water sport like paddleboarding. Make sure you equip yourself with quality water gear and safety equipment, like a personal floatation device. Such equipment you can find on the sites such as redoriginal.com. At the end of the day, being active outdoors has the gym beat, but you want to make sure you go about your outdoor adventures the right way! Be prepared, invest in quality gear that supports your new (or seasoned!) hobbies and enjoy!