27 Jun [2] Step Your Workout Up A Notch
REWARD & REASON [#2] Step Your Workout Up A Notch
Forget the gym. Walking and running outside has more benefits than using a treadmill or track – and is actually a more strenuous work out. First off, you stride differently when walking or running outdoors. Studies have found that outside fitness sessions use more muscles and we even flex our ankles more when we walk or run outside. Secondly, once in a while the terrain changes on an outdoor trail – we walk or run downhill, and that stresses muscles differently than running on flat or uphill terrain. “In studies comparing the exertion of running on a treadmill and the exertion of running outside, treadmill runners expended less energy to cover the same distance as those striding across the ground outside, primarily because indoor exercisers face no wind resistance or changes in terrain, no matter how subtle.”
As well, the change of scenery helps to make it more reinforcing to exercise outside. In fact, it has been suggested that people who engage in outdoor pursuits are that much more likely to exercise regularly. It seems that it is a lot more boring to exercise for the sake of exercising in a gym than it is to engage in an outdoor activity. In other words, when you go for a paddle or a hike, it seems less like exercise and more like fun! – Source
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