Mid-summer break feels like it’s when the wheels come off a little. The vacations have been taken. The chore charts and summer reading lists and all the other good intentions (a plan! structure!) we had back in June are long gone. When the days start bleeding into each other and the temperatures keep creeping higher, even the most disciplined proponent of exercise can find themselves thinking—from the comfort of their A/C—”meh, let’s have a movie day today and be active tomorrow.”
The thing is though, taking a break for your typical exercise routine is perfectly fine! Nobody wants to go run five miles when it’s 95 degrees outside. Summertime is actually the perfect time to think outside the box—there are plenty of ways to be active that are fun, involve the whole family, AND can keep you cool.
1. Go chasing waterfalls. Explore a state park that includes a waterfall to cool off (there are four—Cummins Falls, Rock Island, Burgess Falls, and Fall Creek Falls—that are less than two hours from Nashville!)
2. Or stick to the rivers and the lakes that you’re used to. Swim, ski, tube, kneeboard—you’ll work muscles you didn’t know you had.
3. Hit the pool, but don’t just head for the shaded lounger. Make your next pool day an active one! Play basketball, volleyball, or pool games with the kids (or grownups). Have a diving contest. Race from one end of the pool to the other.
4. Go for a bike ride. Spring for popsicles at the end.
5. Hit up a water park. You’ll be sure to get your steps in!
6. Play a little pickleball. There’s a reason this sport is suddenly everywhere—the rules are simple, the equipment is inexpensive, it doesn’t take long to pick up the basics, and the games move pretty quickly.