How To Fit the Outdoors Into Your (Packed) Schedule
Ever heard someone complain about how nobody spends enough time outside anymore? That our desk jobs keep us inside? And that when we’re not working we’re glued to our gadgets? Well, turns out its true and it’s a legit problem. But maybe having an interest in being outdoors isn’t your problem — maybe you just don’t have the time. But no worries! We’ve got 5 solid tips for you to find ways to fit outdoor rec into your schedule, no matter how busy you are.
“Sometimes when you’re a city slicker you forget that there are little bits of nature scattered around your stomping ground…”
01. Expand Your Idea of the Outdoors
This is an especially good option if you live in an urban jungle!
Chillin’ in gardens and parks may not be as exciting as a hiking trail or as secluded as a nice camping spot, but it’s a temporary reprieve from industrial life before your next legit getaway. Sometimes when you’re a city slicker you forget that there are little bits of nature scattered around your stomping ground, but they are there, and you can take advantage of them!
If you find a find a place close to home, work, school or whatever, it’s easier to take regular visits to. And you’ll feel less inconvenienced about doing it (and therefore do it more frequently — kinda a smart move, right?)
02. Take Regular Day Trips
I know, I know — long trips are bomb. You can pretend you were raised by wolves in the middle of nowhere and forget about the daily grind. But alas, it’s harder to take super long trips on the regular, isn’t it?
So why not take regular day trips instead? They’re easier to plan, less expensive, and you can get regular (or semi-regular) adventures outside of your normal area. Admittedly, this can be harder depending on where you’re living (I refer you to point #1), but even if you think there’s nowhere close to you, you may be surprised at some hidden gems near your town if you creep around Google a bit.
One piece of advice: don’t treat it as a chore. This may seem obvious, but if you find yourself planning it and stressing about scheduling or timing or whatever, remember that it’s a MINI-VACATION! If you can’t fit something in this time around, you’ll sure as hell fit it in next time, or the time after that, or the time after that (you get the picture).
“…even if you think there’s nowhere close to you, you may be surprised at some hidden gems near your town if you creep around Google a bit.”
03. Take Advantage of Short Down Time Moments
I know nights spent scrolling Instagram or “Netflix and Chillin’” are nice after a hella long day. But if we think of how many days and/or nights off we spend doing not much of anything, maybe it turns out we can fit a bit of outdoorsiness into our schedules after all.
I get it, you’re wiped! But time spent outdoors helps both your bod and your brain in ways that scrolling and netflixing unfortunately do not. So if you’re actually more refreshed after an outdoor excursion, why not take a short walk, go for a swim (avoid the kid-pee laden indoor pools obviously), or an overnight camping trip instead of getting sucked into the next twitter war?
Oh, and in case you were wondering: yes, you can apply everything from tip #1 to this.
04. Work Outside
Again, this one may not be as exciting as roughing it in the woods or anything like that, but sometimes simply taking your work outside is a great way to escape the cubicle. And as we just covered, being outside in general is WAY better for your psych health (and health in general) compared to being indoors. So sometimes little things like taking your laptop to the backyard, a park, or a community garden might have to suffice.
And who knows? This may be especially good if you feel like you’re on overload. I don’t know about you but I don’t work nearly as efficiently or creatively if I feel holed up. So why not (literally) get a breath of fresh air and take less time to do this same amount of shit?
Oh, and if you go somewhere with no WiFi, just go old school and take a notebook. Or better yet, download your work ahead of time! As a bonus, you’ll have a good reason to avoid calls from your boss or other avoidable office mates.
“…time spent outdoors helps both your bod and your brain in ways that scrolling and netflixing unfortunately do not.”
05. Join a Hiking Meetup
Or a meetup of your preferred form of outdoor rec. Maybe you’re the type of person who has some time do the outdoorsy things you like, but tends to put off doing them for the hell of it. A little nudge is all ya need, so having a group of people to regularly do and outdoor activity with could give you that little nudge.
So you need a little encouragement to get out of the house on your day off? Join a hiking, foraging, camping or whatever type of group you’re into. It’s a way to plan ahead for time spent outdoors, and you get to meet cool peeps and bond about escaping your daily grind.
“Once you take the dive into doing outdoorsy shit on the regular and in small ways, it becomes easier to balance it with everything else.”
Once you take the dive into doing outdoorsy shit on the regular and in small ways, it becomes easier to balance it with everything else. No excuses next time you think you don’t have time for nature shit, cause you’ve got this list to guide you! Now get out there and #protectyourwild.
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By Darian Williams, ALDA’s Blog and Digital Marketing Specialist Intern
Originally published at alda.life.
