Can you burn more calories by exercising outdoors?

Kathleen McQuaide-Little of the Sports Science Institute of South Africa says that outdoor exercise can be much more energizing and stress relieving when compared to a training session in a crowded gym. This can be due to the fact that all of our senses are stimulated when we are outdoors.

Exercising indoors and outdoors are both beneficial.

Benefits of indoor exercising

• You have more privacy when exercising in your own home and can easily fit an exercise routine into your daily activities.

• At the gym, you could socialise and chat to friends whilst exercising together.

• You may be relatively safer when exercising indoors as opposed to exercising alone outdoors.

Benefits of outdoor exercising

• You can enjoy the fresh air and scenery when exercising outdoors.

• The change of atmosphere and environment may also help to reduce high stress levels.

• Factors such as changes in weather conditions and varying terrain can make an outdoor exercise session more strenuous (and interesting!). This may help us burn more calories and reach our weight loss goals quicker.

Whichever way you choose to exercise, stay focused and enjoy exercising!

1. Prev:Make weight loss a family goal
2. Next:A quick rule to kill your sugar craving