Child on a park bench enjoys a day outside with a friend
The holidays are a time of celebration, gift giving and spending way too much time indoors. Here are several holiday tips for the season on why you might want to get your family out of the house, off the couches and hanging out on park benches instead.
First of all, the average American spends waaaaay too much time indoors. It is estimated that we occupy 93% of our time inside something- whether it's a home, an office or a car.
That's not good.
For one, time sitting on a park bench and under the sun will increase your levels of Vitamin D. This vitamin is crucial for fighting infections, flus, colds and bad germs in general. Sunlight has incredible powers.
For example, one study reported that people in hospitals who were exposed to sunlight in their rooms used 22% less pain medication than other patients. That's while they were still inside.
Secondly, children need to be outdoors to increase their overall levels of activity. Sure, inside the house they bounce off the walls from time to time. But most of the time there are either sitting in front of a TV, a video game or a computer.
A study in 2013 found that children today spend TWICE AS MUCH time indoors than kids did back in the 1970s and 1980s.
Sure, this is the electronic age and we have an amazing variety of techno-gadgets to play with - Xboxes, iPads and Snapchats. But like any butterfly effect, these gadgets have other implications as well. One of those is tempting people to spend more time on their couches inside their homes.
Okay, so your children get new smartphones or tablets for Christmas. They are going to want to play with them. That's understandable.
Still, shove them all in a mini-van and get them to a park. They can sit on all the park benches they want and play with their new gadgets. At least they will be spending time inhaling fresh air and absorbing natural sunlight.
Bring along a ball, a kite a Frisbee. The great thing about kids is that at some point, there are even going to get bored with their new digital toys and will want to do something else. That's how they can get that physical activity they desperately need, the activity First Lady Michelle Obama has made it her personal mission to promote.
Holiday tips with great benefits and zero costs
Speaking of fresh air. Some people might say that people who venture outdoors to a park might be subjecting themselves to air pollution. Well guess what, there's air pollution inside a house as well.
In fact, the level of pollutants in homes are often 2 to 5 times worse than outdoors. Sure you have filters in your heating vents. But all that dust and other particles floating around are not particularly healthy for your lungs or young lungs. Get thee outdoors to a park or playground.
At a park, Mother Nature provides the most effective air purifying devices on the planet - trees, grass and plants.
Got cranky kids who are too overwhelmed by all the holiday activity? How about relatives? People starting to get on each others' nerves like they tend to do when they spend a lot of time together in a confined place?
Take them all to a park and get them out in the open air. Let them run or rest on those park benches. Research shows spending time outside is an effective way to relieve stress and anxiety. For older relatives, going outside helps their bodies in a variety of ways.
In fact, one medical journal reports that people who went outside daily at age 70 reported fewer new complaints about aliments as they aged. You've got a captive audience of grandparents, aunt and uncles during the holidays. Take them out to a park to remind them of the benefits of the outdoors for the elderly, not just children.
Once out of the house and into a park, everybody will certainly have a lot more elbow room. If they want to sit on a park bench and chat, that's fine. Or if they want to get up and go for a walk off by themselves, they have that option too. At least with a big wide open park area you can keep an eye on everybody.
Is everybody getting tired of sitting down at the same old dining room table during all those days off during the holidays? Why not pack a meal and display it nicely on a park picnic table?
Park picnic tabl
Cook a meal on a park grill. You can't beat the scenery and you don't need to feel like the walls and ceiling are on top of you when your ceiling is the wide-open sky.
But wait, someone might say, it's winter. In some states (not many) it's cold outside. So what. There's an old saying that goes something like this, "It's not the cold weather that is the problem, it's what you are wearing."
In this day and age of North Face fleece and Columbia down jackets, there are plenty of products you can wear to cope with the cold weather. That's no excuse.
Be sure to dress in layers, wear a hat as much of your body heat leaves through your head and bring gloves. In fact, one factor you want to be careful about is that when people start moving outdoors, they tend to sweat.
With layers of clothing, you can remove bits as you get warmer. The last thing you want to do is get all sweaty and then stop moving. That sweat will turn into a cold blanket inside your clothes that can be unpleasant and actually downright dangerous.
Plus, cold weather brings along a whole slew of fun activities you can only do during the winter - sledding, cross country skiing, downhill skiing and ice skating.
Go for a bike ride. You can in all types of weather. The latest hot trend in bicycling is to ride the new wide-tired "fat bikes" that can cross over snow and ice.
Bicycle parking rack at a par
These bicycle tires have extra-large threads and have twice as much surface area as regular tires. They are a fun way to get outside no matter how low the temperatures go. Check your local bike rental shops or bike stores. For winter sports, this is one of the fastest growing trends out there. (They are also popular for trail riding and riding over gravel or sand).
But be sure to secure that bicycle to a bicycle parking rack with a sturdy U-lock.
And then there's the family dog. Sure, Max or Molly likes to get the occasional Christmas gift.
But you know what would be a great gift for them? You got it, use that day off to take them to a park where they can stretch their legs. Better yet, bring them to a dog park where they can run around with some friends and play on the dog park equipment. That's a true holiday treat for Fido or Fifi.
Want some holiday tips to create a diverse, healthy experience? Get the family outside running in parks, playing with their electronic gizmos on park benches or enjoying a meal alfresco on park picnic tables. The gift of fresh air is one of the best gifts of all, and it's 100% free.
Here's wishing everybody Happy Holidays from the crew at The Park Catalog.