outdoor exercise
OUT ABOUT
Could outdoor exercise be a way of engaging the inactive population and even acting as a feeder for gyms? Kath Hudson asks the experts
R 62 ecently, I crossed paths with around 30 or 40 people
‘of a certain age’ wrapped up for the elements, enjoying a community walk, led by a cheerful leader. They were chatting, having fun and it looked like a great social occasion. I felt that if someone were recently widowed,
new to the area, just retired, or had been told by the doctor to exercise, it would be a great way of meeting new people, keeping busy and getting fit at the same time. Would joining a gym offer the same benefits for these people? I doubt it. However, if after a few months the instructor suggested doing
a suitable class at the local gym, or a gym-run class at a village hall, would they be interested? Quite possibly. Gyms can’t replace outdoor exercise – it’s too appealing,
especially when so many of us spend the vast majority of our lives cooped up indoors. So can the industry embrace the outdoor arena? Could gyms offer outdoor sessions, or perhaps link up with outdoor exercise providers to run complementary, gym- based programmes to maintain exercise regimes in the winter? Could outdoor exercise be a route to inspire those who don’t yet feel gyms are ‘for them’ to get active? We ask the experts…
MICHELLE BLETSO
mental wellbeing, along with fresh air and vitamin D. It’s also fun – just look at the growth in open water swimming, cycling, triathlon, charity runs, outdoor bootcamps and trekking adventures. In response to this, we are upping our leisure centres’
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outdoor exercise provision. We currently run walking and running clubs and outdoor bootcamps at numerous sites. Last September, with Drummond Education, we trained 40 in-house fi tness motivators in outdoor fi tness, and 20 more in pure running workshops, in order to offer greener workouts. Colleagues are now also starting to be trained in triathlon coaching, so from April we’ll be offering more community walks, running, outdoor bootcamps and social cycling. There are many other ways the industry could appeal
to outdoor exercisers, such as offering complementary indoor programmes: core strength or conditioning sessions for triathletes and runners, for example.
Read Health Club Management online at
healthclubmanagement.co.uk/digital march 2012 © cybertrek 2012
GROUP FITNESS DEVELOPMENT MANAGER, EVERYONE ACTIVE
eing outdoors is a very satisfying way to exercise: it gives an improved sense of
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