If you’re looking for a great way for your family to stay active this summer, it’s time to try something new, and take a hike! There are many excellent benefits of hiking, so why not make it a family affair? Connecting with nature, inspiring your kids to exercise, and improving mental and physical health are just a few reasons to take a hike this summer. Read on to discover the many ways taking a hike can benefit you and your family.

1. Benefits Your Mind & Body

Hiking can be a great mood lifter. Parents, have you been feeling burnt out this summer? Tension can build up quickly. If you feel stressed, anxious, or are experiencing symptoms of depression like fatigue and irritability, then it’s important to find healthy ways to care for your mental health and manage emotional well-being in your household. For instance, some doctors are prescribing “nature walks” for both children and adults and exploring how nature can benefit mental health. Getting out with nature, along with learning about different approaches to therapy by speaking with a mental health professional, could help you to better care for your mental health Let hiking be a therapeutic outlet and boredom buster by trying these things during your adventure:

• Listen to the birds chirp
• Meditate along the way
• Breathe the fresh air
• Have your children try breathing exercises at the summit

Hiking is excellent exercise for the body as well. It’s a great extension of what you’re doing at the club. Hiking is sure to get your heart pumping and boost endurance when climbing steep terrain. In addition, it will be good for your children as well by exercising their young hearts and lungs to help them grow up to be healthy, happy adults.

2. Helps You Acquire New Skills

Going for a hike with your family can help you learn new skills together in an entertaining way. For instance, teach your children how to read a map to navigate and pick out a trail. This can be a great way to practice cardinal directions, understand how to read the map legend, and discover the topography of where you’ll be hiking.

Your children can learn about the unique environment you will be hiking in, such as plants, animals, and the climate. This will help to encourage outdoor safety and awareness as well. Children can learn about precautions like wearing the proper protective gear, and how to look out for hazards like poison oak. Encourage a family member to play the role of trail guide to make things extra fun.

3. Makes Exercising Fun

It may be hard to get your children off the devices and the couch this summer, but it’s important that they get exercise each day. Many kids will tell you that exercise is not their idea of fun, but they might be surprised by how much they enjoy movement-based activities like hiking. There are so many fun things to do on a hike such as:

• Role play “tour guide” or “park ranger”
• Bring along a friend
• Picnic
• Nature photo contest

Getting your family into hiking helps to encourage an active lifestyle and can fit well with additional ways to make your family healthier today.

4. Helps Strengthen Relationships

Another great reason to take a hike with your family this summer is that it can help to strengthen your relationships. From being able to give and follow instructions on trail safety to problem-solving and providing clear directions, hiking is a great way to foster communication skills with your family. Not only that, but spending meaningful time together allows you to connect and have deeper conversations. Going on a hike allows you to have conversations that you may not find yourself having due to the distractions of everyday life. As you hike along, ask your kids questions to encourage them to think deeply. You could start a great conversation about what they learned today.

5. Fosters an Appreciation for Nature

With a lot of time spent indoors, it can be easy to forget to enjoy mother nature and all the beauty and opportunities it presents us. Taking a hike is an excellent way for you and your family to get off the grid and really connect with nature.

Remember to observe nature and appreciate the natural environment. When you go outdoors do you find yourself continuing to scroll through social media? Are you preoccupied and disengaged? Instead, find beauty in the wonders surrounding you, and have your kids do the same.

Encourage your children to start a nature journal. Ask them to describe what they see and create a story about their hiking experience.