t's the start of another year and I've spent some time reflecting on what has happened last year. It was jam packed if you haven't had a chance yet then read my previous blog and you'll see just how much my life has changed. For this year I would like to know just how much time I am spending outdoors. I have seen online the idea of spending 1,000 hours outside, it's a book called 1,000 hours Outside: Activities To Match Screen Time With Green Time by Ginny Yurich. The idea is that it's a book of activities to do as families or for kids to match their time looking at a screen with outdoor time in nature.
The idea of this really hit home for me, even as an adult. I feel like I need to spend more time in nature. Over these last couple of months I've spent more and more time looking at screens and sitting down. It feels completely unnatural for me and If I can get some concentrated outside time, where I can move and be in my surroundings then I'd only see that as something positive. I already walk the dog everyday and get some outside time. In these dark winter months I've been struggling to feel engaged and although I'm walking the dog the wet weather and little daylight have taken their toll on me.
When I break it down into practicalities the 1000 hours over the year would work out to 2.7 hrs a day. Let's call it near 3 hours a day for a whole year - 365 days in the year. 90 hours per month. Instead of counting every minute outside I've gone for an easier way to register the time outside and have gone for increments of 15 minutes at a time. I'm sure some outside time will be more and I'm sure some outside time will be under. Outside time will be counted as time in the outdoors, this can be things like walking the dog, walking to the shops, time in the garden. Things that wouldn't count would be things like travel time in a car, train or bus. Yet If I were to cycle, walk or run somewhere this would count towards my overall time. These are just some of the boundaries that I can think of at the start gate. When it comes to time in the van then sleeping in the van doesn't count as outside but when it comes to meal preparation and eating (this is usually done alfresco) then this will count towards the overall time.
I'm a few days into the challenge and have been walking the dog for slightly longer than normal. It has challenged my perceptions on whether I can make a journey on foot rather than by car, solely to increase my time. If it can be measured, it can be improved! The next step will be to create something that Is clear documentation on how many hours have been accumulated
I am looking forward to how this challenge will be documented and comparing the months as we enter into the summer months. Life will, undoubtedly, put a few spanners in the works. Things that we didn't expect but I'm going to take the time to enjoy the process on this one, rather than get bogged down in the numbers. Let me know what you guys think will help to complete this little challenge.
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