The temperatures are finally cooling down in the Midwest, and the leaves are starting to turn.  I sometimes find it hard to workout in the gym, when the weather is so beautiful outside! There’s absolutely nothing better than going for a run when there’s a slight chill in the air, the sun is shining and nature is all around me. It’s those types of runs that I get my best ideas for my blog.  It helps clear my head of all the day-to-day stuff, no kids, no one needing or wanting something, it’s just me and the outdoors! It causes me to take one of those deep/lung filling breaths that come out of nowhere, yet they relax you.  If that doesn’t motivate you to get outside and run, perhaps these next 6 reasons to run outside in the fall, will!

6 Reasons to Run Outside in the Fall

1) It helps you lose weight– Running, by itself can help you shed some pounds, but running when its cooler outside causes your body to have to work harder to keep itself warm, therefore burning more calories!

 2) It Boosts Your Mood– There’s nothing better to help you clear your head, decrease stress, than endorphins and Vitamin D!  I do my best thinking when I am running, it literally is the best therapy for me. I struggled with postpartum depression for a bit after 2 of my 3 children were born.  The one thing that helped get me through it was being outside in the sunshine and going for walks.  This is where runner’s high comes in! When you run, your brain pumps out endorphins, which make you happy, and those little puppies make you a better parent/spouse/friend!

 3) You learn breath control– In the few times that I do run without headphones in, for whatever reason, it enables me to pay attention to my breathing.  Listening to my own breath, enables me to help be one with my body, as I work hard to condition it(whoa, I just went deep….. right)?  My chiropractor once told me that when I am exercising, to focus on breathing through my lower abdomen.  This meant that during each breath in, it would cause my stomach to move outward.  You’re thinking, that’s crazy, I’ve always heard to keep your abs tight…..wrong! I thought this too, until I started paying attention to my breathing.  If you don’t breathe through your abdomen, it causes you to breathe through your chest, in turn, causing you to tense up your shoulders each time.  If you breathe through your abdomen, you get a much fuller breath, and it helps keep your shoulders and neck relaxed, causing less tension there.

4) You appreciate nature more– Running outside helps you to notice the trees, green grass, the cool breeze and the sounds of the birds. Sometimes, life gets to going so fast that we forget about what makes up the small things in life, like noticing these things.

5) Reasons to buy new gear– If you’re going to run outside when the temps are cooler, you need proper gear, right?  You don’t want to just throw on layers upon layers that can actually do more harm than good, and hope your feet don’t hurt in the same shoes you wear to the gym! You’ll want the right material in your clothes that wick the sweat away from your body, and find the right shoes! Shop some great choices below:

6) Stronger Immune System– Running helps lessen cold symptoms and the time frame of a typical cold.  Studies show that if you start to feel one coming on, a 30-minute run can stimulate the immune system to fight off a cold before it has a chance to fully set in.