Working out does not require having an expensive gym membership or equipment. All you need is a pair of good athletic shoes and a can-do attitude. The best places to workout are the areas that are easily accessible:
- Outdoors and Mother Earth Gyms: Exercising outside in the natural world is the best place. The outdoors is highly accessible and does not cost a penny. Different types of outdoor settings offer different benefits. For example, running through terrain offers us variable resistance and works many different muscles. Be creative by using tree logs, stumps, rocks, and whatever is available.
- Gyms/Fitness Centers: If you have access to a modern gym/fitness center, use it! Much of the equipment can be useful and offer an outstanding variety of strength and conditioning options.
- Rez Gyms: ‘Rez Gym’ is a term for hybridized areas using our yards, fields, or other outdoor settings on our reservations. We can create makeshift equipment and put it together to create unique and fun fitness routines. If you live in a rural area, you can often find tires, bricks, ropes, hay bales, cement blocks, logs, telephone poles, and various sized scrap metals to put together some fitness equipment.
- Traditional Games & Sports: If you have sporting equipment (soccer balls, basketballs, etc.), an open area, and people who want to have fun, playing sports is a great way to get in shape!
Resources: #WellforCulture
Special Thanks: Derek Chang graduated with a Bachelors degree in Biomedical Engineering from the University of Utah. Go Utes! He was born and raised in Salt Lake City, Utah. He aspires to become a physician-entrepreneur to find and create new ways of improving overall patient health. He enjoys skiing, hiking, camping, reading books, meeting new people, and learning anything new.
