Ecotherapy Exercises. Things to do in the Winter

This earth we call home is so good to us.

It seems that we’re always looking for things outside of ourselves to make us feel better and a lot of times we forget this earth is here all the time to help us better ourselves. We just need a few tools or just our feet to embrace the ecotherapy this world can give us.

Below are some activities I really enjoy. If I’m ever feeling the winter blues, bored have some cabin fever or any kind of negative energy I keep myself motivated and moving using the land we all share. I do these activities no matter how I’m feeling, through the positives and negatives life throws us.

This is a personal experience post and I hope you can relate or want to try some of these yourself!

Skiing and snowboarding

If you live in an area with a mountain, I highly suggest skiing or snowboarding. Seriously, I absolutely love skiing. My boyfriend loves snowboarding.

There is just something about gravity pulling you down a mountain. Its challenging and refreshing at the same time. The wind in your face is a wonderful ecotherapy and your also getting a full body workout at the same time.

The interesting part about this sport is how you can be relaxed while drifting down the mountain but getting a workout at the same time. So if you’re a little lazy you can delazify yourself (I made that word up, read it really really slow).

Don’t get me wrong it is totally challenging but you’re still floating on a board or skies and just steering with your legs. Its amazing.

Dont forget the scenery! You get mountain views and forest scenery for some wonderful ecotherapy.

Sledding

The best way to bring your little kid self back is finding a hill or two and sending it on a sled.

i talked about in another post dressing up in a full body retro snow suit when you go out on your sledding quest.

I highly recommend these suits because you can fully submerge yourself in any snow condition without getting that powder in your pants or jacket.

You have to really get into this sport to feel the full ecotherapy effect. I also highly recommend wearing a helmet for safety since this is an extreme sport.

Snowman building

If you live somewhere in the snow, snowman building will bring you a smile and a challenge.

It honestly kind of blows my mind how the snow can collect and build awesome things. It has to be the perfect snow, nice and sticky. So you can’t always up and build a snowman, but if you have that special day with sticky snow,challenge yourself to make the biggest, most detailed snowman ever.

Snow sculptures, forts, walls or igloos

After you get a bunch of snow and you have to shovel yourself out of your own home you can have a little fun with it.

Shovel all the snow in a giant, tall pile. You may have to wait for the weather to warm up so will have nice sticky snow.

Then get creative and make something. I like using mittens so I can make details with my hands while its warm. Again I like to wear my full body suit so I can get down and dirty in the snow.

The easiest thing to make and most fun for all in my opinion is making walls around a fire pit. It keeps your mind stimulated and focused, you’re getting exercise and in the end your rewarded with an awesome fort that will last until the snow melts.

Fat biking

A more challenging ecotherapy exercise would be fat biking. If you like mountain biking i bet you’ll like fat biking and if you’ve never tried either I think you should give it a shot just because of how fun it is.

There are many groomed trails around for fat biking. There’s actually a pretty big fat bike culture so when you get out on some trails you may even meet new friends.

Fat biking gives you a challenge, gets your body moving and gives you visual, mental and physical stimulation. If I’m feeling down in the winter months and i pull myself together enough to get on some trails I feel like a brand new person ready to take on anything.

Snow shoeing and hiking

If you’re low-key and want simple ecotherapy but there’s too much snow, grab yourself some snowshoes and hit up your local nature and hiking trails! Bring a friend, your dog, your camera or just go by yourself. (always tell someone before hiking)

Snowshoeing is totally different from normal hiking its a little more challenging a little more exercising but that’s what makes it so wonderful. It’ll take your focus away from the winter blues and help you to appreciate this amazing earth we call home.

When your moving in the cold your body will warm up fast and you’ll forget the cold and feel better.

Photography

This can be included in any activity above. Its my all time favorite ecotherapy activity in any season.

You can use any camera from your phone to a point and shoot to a dslr. My personal favorite is a point and shoot . Its light weight, you can keep your gloves or mittens on when you turn the camera on and hit the shutter button so your hands don’t get cold. I noticed my battery lasts longer in a point and shoot in colder months.

You could get into your car, drive to a scenic lookout if it’s too cold and shoot outside and still enjoy the day in some warmth but out of the house.

Snowflake catching and photographing

On a snow day you can have some fun
If you have a good camera like a dslr, some phones and point and shoots that can handle macro mode.

You can use black fabric like a hat mitten or sweater or use black construction paper. Leave the paper or fabric outside for a half hour or more so it’s at the same temperature as outside. Once its cold catch some snowflakes on the fabric, don’t overload it just a little bit, then get under a roof that is still cold and outside and use your camera’s macro mode and take photos of the snow! It’s an amazing little activity. You get to see how beautiful and unique snow is. It’s kind of mind-blowing!!

Star gazing or cloud watching

Last but not least. The cold winter months seems to make the stars brighter. Sometimes if we’re lucky we will get a night of meteor showers or the aurora .

my boyfriend and I have a slider door facing an open field. One night we put down some pillows and blankets on the floor and watched the stars until our eyes got heavy and we fell asleep.

The next day I felt so good. It just is a great feeling falling asleep to the sight of stars. Another time my brother had a pickup truck and after a couple of hours of night sledding we made a snow bed in the bed of his pickup truck and we had a group of friends and we all packed ourselves in the back of the truck and gazed at the stars for a few hours until we were cold. We shared stories and laughter all while looking at the amazing universe. It’s so simple and great therapy. If the stars are covered by clouds it’s still just as much fun to watch.

Those are just some of my favorite ecotherapy activities. Hope you enjoyed reading these activities and hope you go out to the woods to enjoy this world we live in.

Leave us a comment and tell us some stories about your ecotherapy activities. Thank you for reading!