With the warm weather still here, despite the odd blip, it’s worth making the time to get out and about and enjoy these final weeks of the summer.
Rather than spending your time cooped up in the gym, head into the great outdoors for a workout. There are a range of fun and calorie-burning activities you can have a go at, and the Belfast Telegraph recently highlighted a few of the best.
One of the great outdoor activities in the Peak District is trail running. There are a host of routes you could follow, and you’ll be surrounded by the national park’s stunning scenery. Elliott Upton, a personal trainer from Up Fitness, explained that you’ll get much more out of this kind of run than hitting the treadmill because you’ll use a host of stabilising muscles as you run.
“As with any style of running, there’s no getting away from the full-body and highly respiratory nature of it,” he added.
Another option if you want to get some speed up is to go inline skating. The newspaper noted that an hour of vigorous skating can burn around 580 calories, so it’s a pretty good workout and one that’s bound to put a smile on your face.
For water lovers, stand up paddleboarding (SUP) is a great low-impact option. Matt Harass, regional group exercise manager for Virgin Active, explained that when you’re on a board “you’ll be firing up most of the muscles, with the lower body and core contracting as you anchor to the board and paddle”.
We think that another great way to get active outdoors is by visiting a treetop rope course. This is particularly good for adventurous families.
