As we experienc
ed last week, the warm, sunny days of summer lie right in front of us, making it tempting to skip your workout at the gym and go for a jog outside. I’m guilty of it too sometimes, but here are my main reasons for keeping up my gym workouts during the summer…
- We live in Montana, one day it’s beautiful out, the next it’s hailing or raining…perfect example, last week.
- You’ve worked so hard all winter to up the reps/weights/intensity of your workouts. By not keeping up with your strength training during the summer, come September, you may be starting at square one.
- There’s no need to fight off the swarms of children like you do at the local outdoor pool.
- Air conditioning.
- Oftentimes the intensity of your outdoor workouts may not match those you do with a routine. Try wearing a heart rate monitor to measure your intensity levels; if they are comparable, you’re fine. If one far outweighs the other, stick to that.
I still love to run outside, feel the sunshine, and get a little tan, but I make sure to incorporate my weights first, and then take my cardio outdoors. Another great way to get outside but still keep up your progress is by joining one of our upcoming programs. Functional Fitness, Lana’s Bootcamp, and Triathlon Training have either all or part of their workouts take place outdoors.
Author: Christine Odagiri, Membership Advisor, The Ridge Athletic Clubs