Let’s Get Moving, Outside

Hi friend!  Is anyone else looking forward to the weekend already?!  We have Jordan’s first soccer game and I know it’s gonna be the cutest!  Watching those little guys on the field makes my heart swell.  Then, we’ll be celebrating Brian’s daughter’s birthday- she’s such an awesome girl.  Her and James are the same age and good buddies.

LET’S GET MOVING – OUTSIDE

I’ve never considered myself an ‘outdoorsy’ person.  But, more and more, I’m recognizing the benefits of getting outside and being in nature.   I’m realizing that we are all people of nature and what it does for our mind, body, and soul is grounding and uplifting.

We have gotten accustomed to being comfortable, so we tend to stay inside a lot. I’m definitely guilty of this.

Indoors, we can control our thermostat to be at the perfect temperature so we never have to be hot or cold.  We don’t have to sweat or shiver.

We can control the light and we don’t have to squint.  Even inside our cars we can make ourselves quite comfortable.  And we get so used to that.

I’ve tried in the past to make sure we go outside after dinner to just have a little bit of outdoor time.  It’s really lovely and often, our neighbors end up coming outside too and the little kids play together while the adults chat.

It doesn’t even have to be long or complicated.  No toys, just about 20 minutes before it’s time to get the kids bathed and ready for bed seems to wind them down for the day and help relax us all.

Last summer, my son started spending a lot of time inside on electronics.  It was his preferred way to spend his time and we didn’t have any exercise, movement, or outside time built into our day.

I started a Saturday morning tradition where we walked to the park together or drove to a further park and we’d spend about 45 minutes to an hour outside.

Hot Shot Reversible Set – such an easy, oversized top to throw on and go.  The Free People outfit comes as a set with a lightweight and breathable bike short too.  They’re high waisted with a stretchy waist and very comfortable fit. The top is oversized, I’m wearing an XS.  The shorts fit TTS.

The park closest to our park is a little too far for Jordan to walk the whole time, so I bring the running stroller- the same one I’ve had since James was a baby!

At first, my son complained and didn’t want to go.  Of course, he’d rather stay comfortable inside.  I just persisted and told him that’s what we’re doing and that’s that.  I ignored his complaints (not that that’s easy to do).

Often in parenting, I have to remind myself that I am the parent and sometimes have to make my kids do what they don’t want to do – for their own good.

But now, after so many weeks and now months of Saturday morning park outings, it’s just what we do.  It’s less of a struggle because it’s just part of our Saturdays.

There’s way less complaints although there are still some days my son doesn’t want to go.  I’ll encourage him to bring his soccer ball or basketball so he has something he enjoys doing.

The other day, after not wanting to go, James brought his soccer ball and we did drills together.  I was ready to go before he was!  He kept asking to stay longer!

And a boy from Jordan’s kindergarten class showed up at the park, so they got to play together.

Jubilee Set – Y’all this set is so stinkin’ cute and comfortable!  I love how unique it is with the ruching on the top and pants- and it’s extra flattering from behind.  The pants are listed as mid rise, but they fit me higher up, which I actually prefer.  I also like the banded, elastic hem.  They fit TTS, I’m in an XS.

I’m wearing “Morning Fog” a gorgeous pale, sage green, but they also come in a pretty pink, “Sedona Sunset”

If you’re looking for quality activewear that’s stylish and easy to move in, check out Free People Movement.  It’s what I’m wearing in this post and they have several signature collections, perfect for whatever your active plans entail- hiking, cycling, yoga, dancing, or simply exploring the outdoors.

It’s such an awesome way to start the weekend and it also feels like, when we do it in the morning, it’s done for the day.  It sets the tone for a relaxed weekend.

Jubilee Set

It’s been so hot here this summer, so when we got back home, we’d shower and get on about our day, feeling all fresh and invigorated from getting outside early in the day.

Also, I love that the movement I get from walking and being outside is good for my body.  In the past, I felt like exercise had to be completed in a certain way, for a set period of time.

I still do structured workouts, but I also look at my day in a more wholistic sense.  That is, I recognize that the movement I get just by being active at home and throughout the day and by getting up off the couch and going outside, counts towards my activity goal.

Runner Sling – If I want to be hands free, I can use this runner sling that fits comfortably around your waist to hold your essentials.

Slide Sandals I was so intrigued to try these slide sandals.  They are great for pre and post workout since your foot slides right into them and you can even wear them in the shower.  They’re so sporty and cute in the pink, but they also come in black, white and orange.

I haven’t had Tube Socks in forever, but all the cool kids wear them with their slides.  I tried it and prefer my slides on bare feet, but the socks felt great on my feet and I dig the sporty logo stripe.

Have you been trying to get outside more? There’s even a 1,000 hours outdoor challenge that we’re nowhere near, but I’m feeling good about the progress my family is making.  And I’m proud that I stuck to my guns and got us all outside together, despite the whining.

I feel like it should be even better now that the weather is starting to cool down and we aren’t so hot.  In fact, yesterday was absolutely glorious and the forecast is calling for the same for the foreseeable future!

I’d love to hear how you incorporate movement and outdoor time into your life and, specifically, how you get the kids on board too!

If you’re interested in shopping Free People Movement, check them out here.

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Have a fantastic day friend!

 

Thank you to Free People for sponsoring today’s post.

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Meet Megan

Hi! I’m Megan, mom to a thoughtful teenager and spunky young girl. We call Houston home and recently moved into our dream home. I traded my lawyer hat to become a full-time blogger in 2010. I love sharing my passion for affordable fashion, home decor, organization, & fitness to help inspire you to take care of you!

4 Comments

  1. I have to say that we probably don’t have the same issue as you about getting outside in the Summer with it being too hot. We are just grateful for heat!! I was much better when Amy was younger at making sure we got outside more regularly for a number of reasons. We didn’t have a garden in our first flat so if we wanted to play outside then we had to travel. Then because I had went to all the bother of going somewhere, I made sure we were there for ages!! We also went out in all weathers, we just made sure we were wearing the right clothing (no such thing as bad weather just the wrong clothes). In fact when Amy was little, I used to take her to all the parks all through winter whether it was raining, snowing, no matter what and no one else was there. Then when spring came and the weather got warmer, Amy would be very perturbed as “her park” would be full of all these strange kids playing on “her swings” haha. As a family we like going out for long walks in the woods (I think Americans would call them hikes but to us its just a walk) but Amy now gets bored of them, there has to be a hill involved and I need a bit of encouragement to go up hills haha. In fact this weekend her Dad is away camping with his Scout Group and Amy and I are going to go walk up one of our smaller hills and take a picnic to have at the top. All that being said, now that Amy is 9 and is allowed a bit more freedom, she just wants to go and play with her pals (they mostly all prefer to play outside either in the garden, on their bikes/scooters on the streets or go to the park) so actually I am becoming lazier at getting outside myself. However I am glad I laid the foundations so young as even though she loves playing on her tablet, her first choice will always be to get outside and run around. Long may this continue!!

  2. We started the 1000 hours outside tracker in January. I think realistically you would need to be homeschooling or in a forest school to be able to realistically achieve the 1000 hours here in our climate/schooling lifestyle as it’s about 3 hours a day every single day of the year. But! Like you I am happy to see our progress and feel it will make a great bench mark for beating our time next year. It has lead to us spending many 8 hour days outside over the summer though. The tracker has been a huge motivator for our kids (age 5 &8). They love to be able to see their progress too. We talk about how important outdoor time is for our physical health and mood and they now look for ways to build it into our day. We park and stride to school a few days a week. We do an outdoor break before homework. And over the spring summer I invested in lots more outdoor toys to keep them interested. Tennis rackets, badminton shuttlecocks, splash pads, water guns, space hoppers, monkeys bars and gym bars and of course they love the trampoline. It’s hard to climb trees in full leaf during the summer but they love to climb all through autumn and winter and they love playing in leaf piles. Cycling, scooting and walking the dog are all easy ways to get them out and about. We like to do forest walks and Greenway cycles and a tour of the playgrounds in our city and county. We also like to eat outdoors when possible but we do live in a wet climate so not always easy but covid has made that more accessible with restaurants now having canopies etc. We are lucky to have a large garden so having cousins/friends over is always a fool proof way of getting them outside to play too. The more the merrier!

  3. You look absolutely gorgeous in all of the outfits. And you’re right, we do need to move more. The pandemic had us siting around for ages, now is the time to shine. Go girl!

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