Thanks to New Year's resolutions, fitness clubs should soon be seeing a surge in membership sales.
But some people, such as fitness coach Sarah Heipel, suggest taking advantage of the natural fitness facilities that exist right outside your door. She's talking about the snowy, icy landscape that many of us try to avoid.
"(Exercising outside) is easy, more interesting and a little bit more fulfilling in terms of being outside, getting the sunshine if you've got a lucky day where you have sun," said the exercise expert, who's based in Collingwood, Ont., about 150 kilo-metres north of Toronto.
Heipel said activities such as cross-country skiing and snowshoeing typically burn 20 per cent more calories than an equal amount of time spent on a treadmill. Reasons for this include the lack of balance support available for outdoor activities requiring the use of more muscles, and natural resistance factors such as wind and hills.
She added that even more energy is expended when you consider the likelihood of having a longer workout when in the great outdoors.
"On a treadmill, you can get tired and just stop," Heipel said. "But if you're halfway into the bush outside, you're coming back. Certainly, that tends to make it a bit longer."
Heipel also suggested tobogganing as an activity that can include the whole family and be a great cardiovascular exercise.
"The easy part really doesn't give you many fitness benefits on the way down," she said. "(But) if you're hauling the kids up on the toboggan, that's excellent exercise for Mom and Dad, and tons of fun for the kids. Making (the kids) walk up a few times is good as well."
Downhill skiing and skating are also beneficial activities, Heipel said, though people will not burn as many calories doing these things as with cross-country skiing and snowshoeing.
Heipel acknowledged that many people prefer the gym to the outdoors because they just don't like cold weather. She admitted that she wouldn't mind a climate of year-round warmth like Mexico. However, she said people might not realize how much their bodies warm up while active.
"Within about five minutes of being outside, you're creating so much body heat that it's Mexico inside your coat," she said.
Heipel said dressing appropriately is an important part of enjoying outdoor winter activities. However, she said people tend to overdress more than underdress when exercising outside.
Being active outdoors has other benefits, Heipel added, such as getting vitamin D through exposure to sunlight and more oxygen via the intake of fresh air.
"There's actually a great health benefit to being outside in the cold air," she said. "You can see it on a person's face. It stimulates the blood vessels close to the skin and it's great for circulation. Of course, only to a certain degree; it gets to the point where it's too cold."
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