As you may remember from my previous column, I am determined to tick running a half marathon off my bucket list this year. Well, I have already hit my first roadblock. Turns out, I despise running on a treadmill, as I have been forced to do thanks to an especially frigid winter here in New York City. All that time spent staring at the blank wall while my feet thud away on the machine really got me thinking: is it actually better to exercise outside? Or am I just looking for an excuse to skip out on my training?
Research on indoor versus outdoor exercise is far from conclusive, but some studies suggest there is a slight benefit to the latter. A of 10 studies involving 343 participants found that, overall, results were similar between indoor and outdoor exercise, but other studies did find statistically significant differences 鈥� all of which favoured outdoor workouts.
In a , for example, 30 adults walked about half a kilometre along a trail surrounded by trees while wearing a cap that monitored their brain activity. They then did the same on an indoor treadmill facing a blank wall. The researchers found brainwaves associated with relaxation increased in participants while walking outside versus inside. They also showed greater connectivity between brain regions involved in reasoning, attention and sensory perception, suggesting a heightened focus on the present moment when outdoors. These changes could explain why participants reported enjoying their outdoor walk significantly more.
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Beyond making exercise more enjoyable, outdoor activities may also boost cognitive function. at the University of Victoria in Canada and her colleagues measured attention in 30 adults before and after they went on an indoor and outdoor walk. They found that participants鈥� , but not an indoor one. This may be related to a measurement called P300 peak amplitude, which gauges how strong the brain鈥檚 response to something unexpected is. So if participants have a higher P300 peak amplitude when presented with an unexpected stimuli 鈥� in this case a blue circle after a series of green ones 鈥� that would suggest they are paying closer attention to the task.
These findings suggest running outside is probably better for your mental health, though only slightly. But what about from a physical perspective? This is where things become a bit more complicated. A of 49 studies found no significant difference in performance when running outside compared with running on a treadmill.
However, a study published last year showed that may not be the case when it comes to . at the University of Lisbon in Portugal and his colleagues monitored 104 adults while they completed a workout routine of 12 bodyweight exercises. Of the participants, 53 performed the workout indoors while 51 did so outside surrounded by greenery.
They found that, on average, those in the outdoor group completed more repetitions of exercises than the indoor group. For instance, they were able to perform about two more crunches, squats and lunges during each set. While these differences are slight, they suggest you may be able to squeeze a bit more out of yourself during outdoor workouts than indoor ones.
Yet weather is a factor to consider, too. A review from the finds that aerobic performance peaks at 11掳C and then notably declines around 4掳C and 31掳C. There is also the risk of frostbite, but this really should only be a concern if temperatures drop below -12掳C, depending on how windy it is.
I am a firm believer that the most important aspect of your workout routine is that you enjoy it. That way, it becomes something to look forward to rather than dread. Taking your workout outdoors seems to be one way of making it more pleasurable. It might also have an additional effect on exercise鈥檚 mental and cognitive health benefits. As for me, I think I will invest in warmer athletic wear and try braving the cold 鈥� I don鈥檛 think I can spend much more time running in front of a blank wall before I give up on it altogether.
