Springtime Hiking Suggestions
 

Springtime has hit this area by storm. Yesterday my husband and I went for our first hike of the season. Dang, it was pretty - the trees are starting to uncurl their little leaves.

I have some puny little trails near our house.
I have my hiking boots out and ready to go.
I've chosen a wildflower guide to take along.
But how do I find time for it?

How do I eek a little more time out of my days and weekends to make time to hit the trails?

It's dark in the morning when I head to campus for the day, so waking up earlier isn't an option.

There is more sunlight in the evenings - but I'd hate to get lost and wind up in the dark.

I feel silly asking for advice on this, but there we are -
How do you incorporate a little more physical activity into your day?
Do you find it more difficult to get motivated or to find the time?

I sometimes take lunch off to go for a run around campus. Not hiking, I know, but I could do some urban hiking, I suppose. I kind of have more leeway to take my lunch time when I want to since it is my lab... I make the rules. :) The gym isn't too far from my office and they have lockers and showers there that faculty and staff can use for free.

Actual hiking or any other activity that takes more than an hour is usually relegated to the weekends or a holiday off work. I am looking forward to taking my 18 month old son on hikes this spring (him in a backpack). There are some great places within an hour or so of home. I might even try him out in our tandem kayak on the gentle river that runs behind our house.

Other ideas for incorporating more physical activity into your day:

I gather that you are a scientist working on a college campus. If it is set up like my labs, you might be in a multi-level building. Use the stairs at each end of the building to get in a quick workout. Whether it is coming back from the bathroom, or just on a short break from your bench work. Go out of your way to the far end of the building, take the stairs all of the way to the top, back to the other end of the building, then all the way down. You can make a circuit of this, or just do it once per time out of the lab.

If you've got an office or semi-private space, get up from your chair do some quick air squats or lunges. Even some dips on the arms of your computer chair if that works for you.

My advice is to have a dog.

When the weather turns nice, you tend to think of the places where your dog absolutely loves to romp. In my case, its anyplace where there's water to slosh through and big sticks to carry around. (Off-leash is important, of course.)

The thing with the dog is that you already have time eeked out for walking. And especially with breeds like Labs, you really need to exercise them heavily at least one or two times/week. This means we spend weekends doing this.

Now, I know this doesn't apply to you, gg, but I wanted to offer this up to anyone who might be thinking of getting a dog one day. If you love the outdoors, dogs make it much more fun and dedicated!

As for you, gg, I think it's just a matter of making it a habit. Look at it as your spiritual exercise for the week and do it once or twice a weekend (or some other block of time you know you have (semi)regularly). Look at it as essential to your mental and physical health and prioritize it.

It's good for you and you know it.

Reminds me of a quote... paraphrased:

"I'd rather be hiking in the forest thinking about God than sitting in church thinking about hiking."

I like that, braisler. It's rather Thoreauvian.

This precisely. My wife and I do a longer hike with my sister in law every Sunday somewhere within an hour or two of us, and then just my wife and I walk around our neighborhood for maybe 3-4 miles with the stroller before dinner 2-3 times a week.

Are there any activities you currently do during the day that you could do at night? That might free up some daylight for you.

as an aside, I love the idea of hiking, and have done it maybe once or twice, but it's not really something people do much around where I live. They just go to the beach mostly.

What do you do on a hike? What kind of places are interesting to go on a hike in? I'm curious. I live close to several areas that I imagine would be good for it, but never have gone. Do you go alone? I'd like to have company I think. I think it's the sort of thing that would be more fun if shared.

About the making time aspect of it gg - My time is pretty limited too so I don't know that I can give you much advice. Does the physical activity have to be hiking?

If not, you can wake up earlier and do some pilates or yoga for example. I try to do that as often as possible. That is also feasible in the evening. I always feel very relaxed and centered afterwards.

You could do it outdoors, in a place of your choice that was pleasant. That would not carry any risk of getting lost because it's dark.

This can also be done in an office at lunchtime easily. If you make your physical activity a habit, the question of motivation soon ceases to exist, because the newfound energy it will provide you with will make you want to keep at it.

Or you could hike in the dark like I like to :) Takes some getting used to.

Lil' more dangerous but it really feels like you're in the wilderness. Just don't do it in an unfamiliar place. And watch out for those danged park rangers if you have em, I almost got a ticket once cause I was out after sunset.

When I go for a hike, I keep my eyes open for wildflowers and try to catch a glimpse of wildlife. I pick up interestingly-shaped leaves of trees that I hadn't noticed before. I look at rock formations and if I'm in an area that is known for fossils, I'll keep my eyes open for those, too. When I hike, I like to get away from the stark lines of architecture and landscaping. I look for nature preserves and wild areas. State and national parks are fun as well, but are usually more crowded. I learned as a child never to hike alone, and I usually stick to that concept - though there are little trails that are fairly crowded with hikers where it feels more safe to potentially hike alone. I stick to trails that I know well when I'm taking a friend along who is not accustomed to hiking. I enjoy hiking with my husband, or with any friend. A hiking buddy / friend of mine actually gave me a pair of hiking boots as a wedding gift!

To address some of what has been said about finding time for anything physical - I go for long runs a few times a week. Mainly I run on streets and sidewalks because I run alone and I am unaccustomed to running on trails. Perhaps I should become more comfortable with the idea of running on the local trails that I know well. Still, I see this as a safety concern. It seems like every other week there is a news story about some woman who went running on a trail by herself that was mugged/raped/etc. I think I'll ask around and see if I can find a colleague who would like to take up running on trails with me.

This thread has a lot of interesting responses so far. It's relevant to me in that my SO and I are trying to do more hiking this spring than in past springs; our goal is to go for a hike a weekend. Here it's very easy to do; trails are not far from our house (1.5-2 miles away). Having an actual goal will be helpful for us, I think.

I really enjoy hiking. I take my camera when I go, and look for things to take pictures of.

I do urban hikes since I live in a bustling city and I have no hiking trails..... or do I????

When one looks at a map of Manhattan, you can see where I live, it's the bump on the bottom right by the Williamsburg bridge. There are trails that go along the side of Manhattan, they are working on making it a single park that goes all the way around. Right now it's mostly all the way around, but you can still walk the entire perimeter. To me, I don't like that very much, so I've not done much of it.

I do however do themed walk abouts. There's lots of plaques posted all about the city. Some are about marked historical buildings, busts, scupltures, art works, etc. They are just about on every single block if you are paying attention.

There's gargoyle sightings, caryatids, animals and other decorations to see on the facades of buildings.

There are types of shops to locate on a tour from different ethnic markets to tchotchkes and furnishings.

I've done door walks where I look at the exterior entry way and admire the different doors.

In the winter, I can walk in some places in Midtown walking through indoor"parks" that allow one to cut through the buildings some with atriums and open spaces. Tourists don't know about these little gems.