Why We Love Hiking

I’ve never wanted to climb a mountain, I still don’t.

One of my fondest memories as a kid was playing man-hunt in the woods down the street from my house. My friends and I would wake up at six in the morning in the summertime to scout out new positions, build new forts, run around and be crazy nine year-olds. We’d spend the whole day in the woods. It was glorious. As I’ve grown up, hanging out in the woods has become a distant memory, Until recently.

A successful diet means you need to accomplish 2 things: Eat less crap and start moving your body more. As king-couch-potato, I’m really good at sitting in front of the computer working all day. Once you’re in “the zone”, getting up to get the blow flowing isn’t always possible. So about three weeks ago, Amanda (who spent a lot of time in the woods as a kid too) suggested that we go for a hike in the woods. Honestly, it wasn’t my first choice of things to do, but it was a beautiful day out, so why not?

After about a hundred yards into the woods, all of these emotions came flying into my head. Thoughts about my childhood, the memories of walking in the woods with my parents on Sunday afternoons; It all clicked. This was something that my life was missing. Being outside, not in front of a computer, I felt like I could relax. I let my mind wander.

When we got back to the car after that first hike we both felt electrified and yes, a bit sore. Since that day on we’ve gone on at least two hikes per week. We’ve explored different parts of Rhode Island and heck, we’ve even lost weight. As much as this post is about how much we like hiking, it also about reconnecting with something from your childhood. For me it was reconnecting with the outdoors that I loved so much as child.

Make a special effort over the next month to reconnect with an activity from your childhood, and if you haven’t tried hiking yet, try it out. Maybe even throw in a little Geocaching for fun.