Humans Outside

If you love heading outside like it's your job, you might start looking for ways to make that literally true. If that's you, you're not alone -- it's the inspiration behind the careers of many members of the outdoor industry. But how do you make the jump from one industry to another? And is making nature your job a good idea? Those are just some of the questions Jenna Celmer helps address through...

What are your expectations for yourself? For how you get outside? For what you find there? For what you do there? As the weathers changes into spring and summer, it's easy to look outside and expect yourself to want to be there more or experience certain things when you get out there. But what would happen if you simply listened to yourself instead? In this Outdoor Diary episode, Amy talks about g...

Spend enough time outside and you'll start to notice all of the things growing around you -- and that some of those things look delicious. From greens to berries, to gardening, fishing and evening raising chickens, nature in your backyard can be full of food. For today's guest Tamar Haspel, the possibilities of gathering or growing at least a portion of her own meals, an experience she calls "firs...

We all have a type of weather we just really can't stand. But what if you paused to find a reason to at least appreciate it? What would you find? In this Outdoor Diary episode, Amy talks about her recent experience learning to like the notorious wind in her part of Alaska. Connect with this episode: Join the Humans Outside Challenge Follow Humans Outside on Facebook Follow Humans Outside on Instag...

If you've picked up an outdoor habit or are tackling the Humans Outside 365 Challenge, you may have puzzled over how much time you want to spend outside every day. 15 minutes? 30 minutes? An hour? Or, like Amy, maybe you're shooting for 20 consecutive minutes. When Amy picked that 20 minute goal it was based on a little research she had read about outdoor time "dosage," combined with picking a tim...

It happens: sometimes life is just busy. So how do you make time to go outside when you're busy? How do you keep it a priority? How do you fit it in? In this Outdoor Diary episode Amy talks about how she fits her outdoor time into every day no matter what, and gives you a few tips for how you can do so, too. Connect with this episode: Join the Humans Outside Challenge Follow Humans Outside on Face...

My favorite Humans Outside interviews are with people who teach me lessons so memorable that I find myself thinking about them months later when I'm outside. My interview with Max Romey was one of these, and why I've selected it as a "Best Of" episode. There is no stopping Max Romey -- not when he's painting, not when he's filming, not when he's running and not when he's doing all three at exactly...

Just because nature is right outside your front door doesn't mean everything you want to do in it must be done alone or leaning only on your own experience and knowledge. There's a world of people out there who want to assist you if you just ask them. That can be a hard mindset for Amy, who likes to do things on her own. But asking for a little help has made her outdoor time much better than it wa...

Even if you know next to nothing about Alaska, you've probably still heard of the annual Iditarod sled dog race, where teams of mushers travel with their dogs hundreds of miles across frozen alaska, racing to the remote town of Nome. The race kicks off the first weekend of March with a festival known as Fur Rendezvous or Fur Rondy. Mushing is more than a sport-- it's a lifestyle. And it puts those...

If you've been contemplating an outdoor habit, you may have fallen into a trap Amy constantly finds herself in: thinking you have to go all in. So what's the real deal? In this episode of Amy's Outdoor Diary, she talks about her own "all in" habit and how it keeps her from trying new things. Some of the good stuff: [:45] What does "all in" mean to Amy? [1:25] What all in looks like in Amy's life [...

Note: Human error got the best of me, and despite actually discussing with Carl during our interview (before recording) the difference between astrology and astronomy, I proceeded to use the wrong term in the title of this podcast episode and throughout the post and podcast notes. Carl Gawboy is an astronomer. The below has been corrected. Thank you for understanding! Modern American culture uses...

Bad attitudes and not feeling like doing something are just a part of life. So is facing conditions or circumstances that aren't fun or pleasant. And when it comes to those things being a part of your outdoor habit? There is a reason you should move into them head-on and do the thing anyway. Amy's been thinking about two reasons that's true as she battles through some of her own bad attitude feeli...

How's the end of winter going for you? Across the northern hemisphere hints of spring are popping up, with daffodils and flowers pushing through the ground. That's even true in Alaska, where the longer daylight and temperatures closer to 30 than to 10 are warming things up and offering glimmers of hope, even if they do come between arctic blasts and falling snow. In this Outdoor Diary episode Amy...

"Van life." Sounds like something fancy for someone else, right? Someone who doesn't have a job, or commitments, or a family, or stability, or … or… or. Wrong! Using a camping van or having longterm adventures doesn't have to just be for other people. It can be something normal people just like you use to get closer to nature near and far. This week's guest Kristen Bor knows that's true because sh...

What happens when you take your date day outside? As Amy knows all too well, it can go horribly wrong or be really great. The difference? Communication. In this Outdoor Diary episode Amy talks about two very different ski dates, and why one worked but the other failed spectacularly. Connect with this episode: Join the Humans Outside Challenge Follow Humans Outside on Facebook Follow Humans Outside...

If you've ever experienced a broken heart, you know how dramatically it can impact all aspects of your life. The ending of a relationship or loss of a loved one can be a traumatic, emotional rollercoaster than can last years. And in the midst of it you'll likely find yourself wondering exactly how to make the pain stop and when it will stop hurting. Heartbreak is both the subject and title of a ne...

The Humans Outside podcast hits its two-year anniversary this week. Two years! That's two years of episodes with outdoor-minded guests who have taught Amy (and you) countless lessons about heading into nature. In this episode hear about why the Humans Outside podcast got started and just some of the things Amy has learned through podcasting for two years. Connect with this episode: Join the Humans...

Imagine this: you live in a city or very urban environment, maybe close enough to a major highway that you can hear it, or far away enough from a space you consider a park to make heading there every day seem impossible. You can't imagine really enjoying being outside all the time where you live because it's just so not "nature." If that sounds familiar or like it could be you, Claire Dunn is just...

Disliking new things doesn't make you weak or scared -- it makes you normal. But the good news is that nature is the perfect tool for teaching us to be OK with the new and uncomfortable. Why is that? And how has it impacted Amy? In this week's Outdoor Diary, Amy talks about why heading outside makes it easier to try new things in all parts of life, plus the new thing she's finally working on. Conn...

Getting outside with kids looks pretty easy and fun if you're basing your expectations on social media photos. Delightfully grubby kids frolic through a meadow near a perfectly set-up campsite, and zero people are throwing a temper tantrum or muddling through a poor night of sleep. Also, they all look warm. But of course that's not the full picture. Getting to that moment required overcoming all s...

This month Amy hit 1,600 days in a row spending at least 20 consecutive minutes outside. Along the way she learned two important lessons about what happens when you encounter something you don't like. Hear what she learned on this week's Outdoor Diary podcast episode. Connect with this episode: Join the Humans Outside Challenge Follow Humans Outside on Facebook Follow Humans Outside on Instagram

One of the things that can hold people -- adults, kids, families and otherwise -- back from purposefully spending time outside is the idea that "nature" looks like something other than what is right outside their front door. If it doesn't look like a National Park, does it really count as "nature?" The truth, of course, is that "nature" is whatever is in the fresh air right outside your front door...

Outside is outside, but sometimes it's more nature-rich than others. Does that matter? In this episode of the Humans Outside Outdoor Diary Amy contemplates where her family just spent a week of vacation, and why its decided lack of nature-scapes was totally fine.   Connect with this episode: Join the Humans Outside Challenge Follow Humans Outside on Facebook Follow Humans Outside on Instagram Some...

When we talk about going outside every day, we usually mean in the daytime. But what if heading outside after dark for a little stargazing is just the boost your outdoor habit needs? Vicky Derksen, host of the Night Sky Tourist podcast and a stargazing enthusiast joined us for this episode to talk about something almost completely new to Amy: stargazing. With tips and tricks for how to get into th...

It's easy to head outside when the weather is great. It's even easy to plan to be outside in future bad weather from a seat on a sunny, warm day. But what do you do when the weather rolls in and, suddenly, you're faced with having to actually do it? A recent two-day wind storm with gusts up to 75 mph had Amy thinking about this very thing. So how do you make yourself go outside in bad weather? Her...