College Jolt

Your college years are best spent busy. So where does that leave room for keeping up with your personal fitness? It’s hard work staying healthy with all of the unlimited junk food, parties, and lazy weekends that the college experience provides. That’s why in my series, Shape U, we’re gearing up for a semester of fitness 101, featuring tips and tricks to maintaining your shape this season.

Routine in a rut? Consider how big a role your environment plays in your overall happiness. You wouldn’t want to take a test in a cold, loud room would you? And you wouldn’t want to take a nap on a busy street corner. Your body, too, can tire of unhappy spaces, which may result in weaker performance. Even the dullness of a confined, weekly routine, for instance, will do for your body what an uncomfortable classroom does for your grades.

One of the simplest ways to liven up any body is to retreat into nature. Often depicted as a place of “clear thinking” and a hangout for modern Thoreau-wannabes, our natural surroundings live up to their hype of serenity, but can be experienced by anyone—not just tree huggers. And though it is getting colder in many places, fall can be the perfect outdoor season with simply the right amount of smart layering.

Reasons why you should get back to nature:

1. You’ve probably noticed that watching TV, talking with a friend, or listening to a really good album makes a tiring workout go by fast. So why not make time fly with a little on-the-go bird watching or a sunset stroll through the local park? If you’re bored of staring at the wall in front of the treadmill, the ever-changing environment found, basically anywhere, can be the answer.  Taking in the mix of sights, sounds, and smells of nature will intrigue you far more than the clank of dumbbells.

2. If you’re stressed out, breaking away from crowds can have the effect of a fresh start on a tough day. Surprisingly, one of the easiest ways to uncloud your thoughts is to clear your brain with gulps of fresh air. That’s right—just taking a second to breathe, stretch, and listen to nothing but background buzz can put you in a better place. And many natural sites are quieter than public places, and have plenty of fresh air and space to spare.

3. Natural sites have features that are closer to those that you’d experience in everyday life, whereas gyms can often trick you into non-useful workouts. For instance, if you exercise on and become used to walking on sloped paths, then you’ll be faster and less breathless on campus walks; this is because you are mimicking moves that you use in real life. But if you rely on dumbbells and machines, you are only able to isolate certain muscles and build them sets at a time. While gym equipment is certainly a vital component to many healthy exercise routines, I’d suggest at least one of these “natural movement” exercises per week.

4. Nature is free! Need I say more?

And now, where can you actually go to find it?

To find it—nature, I mean—you probably don’t have to go far. If your school has a big campus, there’s a start. It may be that you walk along a certain path every day to get to your classrooms, thus not even noticing the odd woodland patch just past your chem lab that’d be a perfect spot for a secluded stretch routine. There might even be some sidewalks less traveled that you can scope out for a brisk jog.

When crowds on campus cramp your style, think about taking an off-site hike. Hikes don’t have to be up steep mountains and besides raging waterfalls, like you see on TV. Hikes can be medium to fast-paced walks along any path outside.

Hikes are considered all-body workouts because they activate muscles in your arms, midsections, thighs, back, hips, and more. The terrain will really work your legs, even if it is relatively flat. The contours of nature you experience on a hike as opposed to a monotonous treadmill run will always be more beneficial to your body than not.

By the beach? Those of you attending coastal schools may be able to escape to the beach for a change of scenery. Others can seek out local lakes or rivers that are accessible to joggers or bikers. Again, the terrain (like dry, hilly sand and steep seaward slopes) will give you a hardcore workout, and the moist, breezy air can keep you cool.

Warning!

Don’t forget to bring plenty of fluids when venturing outside. You won’t be able access conveniences such as water fountains, which is perhaps one of the few flaws about doing it outdoors. Other things to remember: a layer of bug spray, sturdy socks, proper cold/hot-weather attire if necessary, and of course, your house key.

Photos courtesy of Google Images, and Goodhousekeeping.com.