The minute she spoke, I knew I would have to do something about my tendency to think out loud.
My eldest daughter and I had just retrieved our lattes from the barista when she suggested a walk at the nearby arboretum. As I considered her notion, I watched a woman in the parking lot hop over a slushy puddle, her fur-trimmed hood pulled up, shoulders hunched against the wind.
I raised my eyebrows at my daughter. Did she mean now? In the cold? We left the house to make a brief drive to the train station to drop her sister off and then a side trip to pick up coffee. We had our hot drinks. We should return to the warm house.
“It was your idea,” my daughter reminded me.
And then I remembered. A few days earlier, lulled by idealism and the comfort of a cozy afghan, I’d gazed out the window as fluffy flakes drifted down and foolishly mused about taking a wintry stroll in the snowy woods. Out loud.
At the moment I wasn’t as confident. I hadn’t worn the right clothes or footwear. We hadn’t plotted out which path to walk or how far to go. And above all, I hadn’t consulted the hourly forecast on weather.com for hazardous conditions, windchill warnings, or the potential for a freak blizzard to spring up and strand us out in the woods.
In my mind, the outdoors in January where I live isn’t to be taken lightly, no matter that it was nearing 40 degrees that day.
The homebody in me rooted her feet to the ground like a cat avoiding a bath. I wanted to take a pass on my daughter’s invitation.
At the height of winter, when we work hard to stay warm and cozy, willingly venturing outdoors for anything more than a trip in the car can seem like folly – a step in the wrong direction.
But the truth is, pretty soon the shine wears off all our hygge indoor activities. The air turns stale. A sense of boredom sets in. We itch for the freedom of the outdoors.
At the same time, the effort it takes to climb out of our snug sofa and bundle for the weather can be overwhelming. The laziness of hibernation is bewitching.
A tug of war sets in between what we want to do and what we know we ought to do. The question is, how do you overcome the inertia keeping you glued to your mug of tea and sherpa blanket?
One Simple Answer That’s Worth a Try
Just do it! (Thanks, Nike.)
When your natural inclination leans toward the comforts of home and the indoors, it’s fruitless to expect you’ll plan for ski vacations or mark your calendar for ice fishing (although if either of those do appeal to you, make the most of it!). Yet you do yourself a disservice if you never venture into the wide open between the winter solstice and spring equinox. Your body, mind and spirit aren’t meant for perpetual time confined to climate-controlled spaces.
That’s why you need to take advantage of spontaneous fresh air excursions.
Why Unplanned is Better Than Planned When it Comes to Winter Outings
- There’s no pressure to make it into an event. The outing shapes itself. It’s tempting to want every out-of-the-norm activity to be social media worthy. We expect leaving the house to mean visiting a new locale, or attending a festival, or trying a new pursuit. And each of these requires preparation. But merely the unexpected nature of a spontaneous outing can be enough to generate the same excitement as if we had planned something big or bold. In fact, for some of us, what could be bolder than leaping at a chance to get outside?
- Planned outings also come with expectations for how they will turn out. Which creates extra baggage in a situation already weighed down by hibernation inertia. Spontaneity removes that baggage. As Anne Bogel says in her book Don’t Overthink It, “when spontaneity strikes, it’s helpful to purposefully adopt a low-stakes mindset. Instead of striving to choose the ideal option, we can aim to choose a good one, reminding ourselves that the best memories often start with something going wrong.”
- Speaking of the weight of inertia… breaking out of a staying-indoors habit is much harder in the winter due to our perceptions of outdoor conditions (it’s always cozier inside). However, if we wait for the “perfect” time to get outside during the winter, that time may never arrive, especially for those of us with an aversion to cold. Seizing the present moment (ie. being spontaneous) is always better than nothing and may be the best method to use if wintry conditions psych you out.
- It makes for good memories, particularly if you’ve not spent time outdoors in a while (which by this point in the season is often true for many of us). “Because it’s different, breaking from routine can be especially memorable. So lean in …you may need to remind yourself that the status quo is always the easier path. But staying home isn’t memorable — there’s a reason to take action!” says Bogel.
- An impromptu venture out into the elements is likely to be more enjoyable than you expect. And it’s almost certainly more enjoyable than if you scheduled that same outing. A study by researchers from Washington University in St. Louis and Ohio State University found that scheduling a leisure activity “makes it feel less free-flowing and more work-like.” When leaving the house for any reason in the winter feels like work, anything we can do to make hanging outdoors more leisurely is a win.
Why not seize the pleasure at once? How often is happiness destroyed by preparation, foolish preparation!
Jane Austen
It’s Not Just For Combatting Cabin Fever. Enjoy Other Benefits Too.
If you’re still unsure about impromptu excursions, remember that any time spent outdoors is worth the effort.
Here are four reasons to emerge from under those sherpa throws and step out your door:
- You can “blow off the stink” as my mother would say. Filling your lungs with fresh outdoor air, letting the wind brush the germs from your body, giving your skin and sinuses a break from the indoor dryness all make a difference to your well being in winter.
According to the EPA, levels of indoor pollutants can be two to five times greater than outdoors. And while this doesn’t mean our homes are unsafe, it goes without saying that we all could do with more fresh air during the winter.
- Spending time outdoors, whether planned or unplanned, is good for your brain. Consider the times when you’ve emerged from an extended time indoors and felt the fog lift from your mind as you took in the fresh, bracing winter air. Time in nature is also known to benefit our creativity.
According to the late David H. Ingvar, a neurophysiologist at the University of Lund in Sweden, “‘it is necessary to be outside for our brains to be stimulated from the flow of sound, light, shapes and colors that nature provides.”
- We know the risks of sickness from viruses in the winter. Given the boosts our immune systems derive from inhaling natural airborne volatile substances such as the terpenes given off by trees, or charged ions occurring in the air near bodies of water, we do well to maintain some level of exposure to the outdoors year round.
- Time outdoors gives us a break from constant stimulation (provided we leave our digital devices behind or in a pocket). In winter when more activity takes place indoors, it can be extra quiet outside.- especially right after a snowfall.
Emma Loewe points out in her book Return to Nature: “The silence after snowfall offers respite from such costly commotion. With fewer people out and about, fewer cars on the road, and a coating of snow to dull any leftover hubbub, what remains is a rare quiet that is important to pay attention to.”
Four Hacks to Gain the Advantage Over Indoor Inertia
- Make yourself a pact to always say “yes” to any spontaneous invitation to head outside. Shifting your default from “no” to “yes” primes you mentally to get up and move.
- Keep it short. Even wintery conditions can be endured without full-on snow pants and boots if taken in small doses.
- Live prepared. Stash an extra set of gloves, scarf, and hat in your car or near your door for those times when you unexpectedly decide to set out into the wintry weather. Hand warmers are also a comfy bonus.
- Promise yourself a post-outing treat. Knowing you’ll warm up with a hot chocolate or by snuggling in front of a crackling fire can act as an incentive to embrace the rigors of the outdoor elements.
I agreed to that walk at the arboretum with my daughter. We enjoyed a half-hour stroll around a manmade lake, taking in the fresh winter air and the sight of dried prairie grasses and ice-sheeted water. I ignored the chill trying to pierce the fabric of my jeans. I forgot to care that puddles dotted the path. I stopped allowing the thought of being outdoors in winter to overwhelm me, and seized the pleasure of being with my daughter in that place, at that moment.
Before you go, get my FREE bonus:
Bonus tips for bearing harsh winter weather all season long
Studies show mindset makes more of a difference than the actual weather itself.
- Watch how you label the weather conditions. Do you call certain conditions “good” and others “bad”? Scandinavians, who are known for their outdoor hardiness, take a non-emotional approach to weather. Cold is cold. Windy is windy. Wet is just that. If you catch yourself making a negative pronouncement, try reframing it more objectively.
- In a similar vein, consider replacing “have to” with “get to” when talking about venturing outdoors. “I get to shovel snow today” may sound cheesy, but often the small change in phrasing can shift the way you experience winter mentally.
