Humans Outside

One of the hardest things about spending time outside in all weather is figuring out what to wear to keep your body comfortable. After all, if heading outside is really uncomfortable, you're simply not going to want to do it. But what's the best way to dress in cold weather? And what if you're entirely new to this and just don't know? In this episode, Amy lays out what she personally wears in cold...

So you've got an outdoor habit, but are you actually making time for fun? If having fun is a priority, how do you make time to actually make it happen? How can you organize your life around creating space for it? Dr. Michael Rucker's new book, The Fun Habit, lays out the reasons we should make fun a priority, how to make it happen and what happens when you do. And in this episode of Humans Outside...

If you're doing an outdoor challenge, we promise the question is going to come up: what counts as "outside?" In this episode Amy lays out the rules -- or the lack therefore -- and goes through what she counts for herself. Listen now. Connect with this episode: Join the Humans Outside Challenge Follow Humans Outside on Instagram Follow Humans Outside on Facebook Some of the good stuff: [:46] Here's...

So you want to create a new habit -- maybe it's heading outside daily for that 20 minutes, maybe it's something related, maybe it's something else entirely. It can be easy to pick a really aggressive goal, or, on the flip side, toy with committing to something and then back out because you don't want to disappoint yourself. In the happy middle, though, is aiming for a habit that both improves your...

Brave? Courageous? Those words don't describe Amy. Or, at least, they didn't used to. But thanks to her outdoor habit she's now more courageous and adventurous than ever before. Why and how did that happen -- and how can it happen for you? Listen now to find out. Connect with this episode: Join the Humans Outside Challenge Follow Humans Outside on Instagram Follow Humans Outside on Facebook Some o...

Got habits on the mind? You're probably in good company, and it's the season to think about what you're going to do about it. But jumping into a new habit or adding something to one you already have can feel a little risky. If you commit to something and can't make it happen, you might feel like you're letting yourself down. So if you do really want to accomplish something or create a sustainable...

How do you find the motivation to build and keep an outdoor habit, no matter what life or the weather throws at you? What's the point of heading outside daily, anyway? Why even bother? That's a question we grapple with in every episode of Humans Outside while we get excited for outdoor adventures and motivated to chase whole-life health and wellness through spending time in nature.  Welcome to Sea...

Inspiration. Information. Those are two of the reasons we've brought you new Humans Outside episodes twice weekly for almost three years. And they are why last winter we ntroduced the Humans Outside challenge kits, which you can still get today. Need help getting your own outdoor challenge going? Listen to learn how we can help. 

December 21 marks the winter solstice -- the official first day of winter and the shortest day of the year with the least time between sunrise and sunset. In Alaska and other places far north, the lack of light is noticeable from both a physical and emotional perspective. But the darkness can bring lessons of light. In this episode Amy lays out what the solstice and its darkness has taught her. Li...

Are you daylight biased? As Amy has learned to become a human who likes to go outside, she focused all of her efforts on daylight. But what happens after dark is worth seeing, too. Spending time with a galaxy of stars by simply looking up after dark shifted how she feels about darkness, winter and her spot in the world. In this episode you'll hear tips and tricks for the beginner night sky viewer...

You've heard of the gifts from the 12 Days of Christmas? Well, the gifts of heading outside don't include any lords-a-leaping (that Amy is aware of) but they do include a parade of other (probably better) things, especially in winter. In this episode Amy talks about just three of the winter gifts she's received during her outdoor time and the impact they've had. Listen now. Connect with this episo...

When Amy first started her outdoor challenge it wasn't to inspire anyone but herself to make getting into nature a daily habit. It wasn't even because she had found heading outside to be so transformative she had to do it every day. Originally, the 20 minute daily challenge was born of a question: how would her life change if she went outside for a certain amount of time every day for a year? The...

Amy is on an adventure this week and checking in from Phoenix, Arizona. She's there on a short vacation with friends -- and not finding what she expected to see there. Hear her quick check-in now. Connect with this episode: Join the Humans Outside Challenge Follow Humans Outside on Instagram Follow Humans Outside on Facebook

It's not just your imagination: the winter sads are the real deal. With less sunlight and more darkness over the winter months, you might feel slow and heavy in both body and spirit. But there are solutions -- we don't actually have to live like this. And that's why I brought Dr. Michael Terman, one of top experts in the use of light therapy, onto the podcast to teach us specifically what we need...

Looking for ways to add outdoor traditions to the holiday season. Over the years Amy and her family have added a variety of outdoor activities to how they celebrate. In this episode Amy shares a few ways you can easily do that with your family and friends, too. Listen now. Connect with this episode: Join the Humans Outside Challenge Follow Humans Outside on Instagram Follow Humans Outside on Faceb...

At what point is heading outside for your daily habit really, truly just a part of who you are? That's a question Amy tackled this week when she realized she'd skated right by the 1,900 day outdoor habit mark without even noticing. Hear more on this episode of the Humans Outside weekly Outdoor Diary. Connect with this episode: Join the Humans Outside Challenge Follow Humans Outside on Instagram Fo...

We all know that spending time outside in the winter is a major key to getting through the season happy and healthy. Winter temperatures and not knowing how to get comfortable in it might be one of the things keeping you inside. And that makes sense. Why in the world would you want to go outside if you know you're going to be uncomfortable, cold and miserable? With a little help from an expert, he...

It's not exactly a low stress time of year — and if it is now, let's be honest, it probably will be at least a little stressful soon. That's just how the holidays go for so many of us. It's part of life. But dealing with it can also be a part of life. And Amy has found that heading outside is perfect for that. In this episode Amy talks about why this time of year is so stressful for her and what s...

Join wear blue: run to remember and Amazon Global Military for a bonus episode of Humans Outside on stories of service and sacrifice for the annual wear blue: run to remember Allied Forces run in partnership with Amazon's Warriors@ employee affinity group. Walk or run a 5k while listening to take purposeful steps on this Veterans Day in the U.S. or Remembrance Day in the United Kingdom and Canada...

Military injuries and combat trauma are part of our origin story here at Humans Outside. It's why we started looking to nature for healing. It's why we moved to Alaska. And it's why we ended up spending at least 20 consecutive minutes outside every day, no matter what. The weeks around Veterans Day are the perfect time to talk about the power of getting outside to address war wounds and the weight...

Amy hasn't always been OK with falling. Once upon a time it was exactly what she was avoiding. But since she started spending more time outside, she's realized that falling is a somewhat inevitable part of life -- plus she's so very good at it. So how does that help with non-outside things? In this episode Amy addresses what she's learned from getting comfortable with falling in all the ways. List...

For thousands of years, Tribal Nations have leaned on an understanding that everything is connected to keep themselves healthy and their communities successful. But western culture has lost or, worse, purposefully ignored the wisdom of those teachings -- and it hasn't made us exceptionally healthy and happy. In their new book The Seven Circles, indigenous wellness advocates Thosh Collins and Chels...

You probably know Amy is a runner. But do you know why? The story goes back to a really tragic military deployment, trying to know what to say or do when so many of your friends' husbands don't come home to their families and worrying that you, too, could get The Knock any day. Listen to this episode to learn why Amy sees running as a path to honoring the fallen while working to live an inspired l...

On the one hand is time management -- using steps to get the most out of every hour. On the other hand is energy and having the bandwidth to get it all done. So what happens when you're great at time management but always find yourself energy poor? You've got time to do everything you need to do, but lack the energy to get around to the things you want to do. Instead you feel rushed at best, or si...

Amy's pretty used to eating her words by now, which is why she's not at all ashamed to admit that she said she'd never, ever ski and now she kind of loves it -- especially when we're talking Nordic skiing. But this week's first ski of the year showed that skiing has brought a totally expected benefit: it's taught her to actually look forward to winter. Never underestimate the power of anticipation...