Features Fresh air
With a glorious summer stretching ahead of us, thoughts inevitably turn to the great outdoors. But for many it’s not all about lazing in the sun – al fresco exercise is a growing trend, as Tim Gillett discovers
exercising outdoors helps to reduce levels of tension, confusion, anger and depression. Furthermore, participants in the study, which
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included 11 trials and 833 adults, reported that outdoor workouts were more enjoyable and more conducive to a continuing exercise regime. T e author of the study, Professor Michael
Depledge, concluded: ‘Some 75 per cent of the European population now live in urban environments, so that increasing eff orts need to be made to reconnect people with nature. ‘Our research, which brings together data from
a wide variety of sources, adds signifi cant weight to the case for spending more time in the natural environment as members of the public and their clinicians fi ght to counteract the negative outcomes of modern living, such as obesity and depression.’ To readers familiar with the joys of a hike in the
countryside or skiing down the side of a snow-covered mountain this will be nothing new – but what about those who have neither the time, inclination or funds for such activities? Are there other options for al fresco exercise?
OUT AND ABOUT Increasingly in the UK, the answer is yes. Outdoor gyms are springing up in parks and urban play areas across the country, and private operators are leading the way in the rush to the great outdoors. Muddy Plimsolls, for example, off ers bespoke training to well-heeled clients in the Regents Park and Primrose Hill areas of London. T e training does not come cheap – a monthly trial comprising four sessions costs £250 – but that will put you in the hands of a
32« May 2011 Sportphysical activity &
OUTDOOR GYMS ARE SPRINGING UP IN PARKS AND URBAN PLAY AREAS ACROSS THE COUNTRY, AND PRIVATE OPERATORS ARE LEADING THE WAY IN THE RUSH
‘skilled expert, passionate about reinventing outdoor personal training’. Trainer Jason Doggett explains: ‘Outdoor workouts
ABOVE LEFT TO RIGHT Coaches and students on the adiZone training facility; utilising green space; an adult enjoys a workout on an adiZone
burn more calories than training indoors. In a gym, you scrabble alongside peak-time crowds, listening to pumped music, enduring pungent smells of enclosed, sweaty bodies. Outside in the fresh air, you’re free to move around and inhabit your own space.’ Jason is eff usive about the delights of exercising in
London’s green spaces: ‘You can throw down a mat and go through a strength and core workout, without attracting an audience. T ere are plenty of semi-
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orking out in the fresh air has distinct advantages over indoor exercise, leading to increased energy, feelings of revitalisation and positive engagement. T at was the fi nding of a recent study by the Peninsula College of Medicine and Dentistry, which also found that
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