When the weather gets nice, it can be tough to get excited about heading indoors to work out in a gym. Environmentally speaking, skipping the gym isn’t a bad thing, especially if it means one less drive to the facility, or one less hour on a power-guzzling treadmill.

Outdoor workouts can go beyond jogging, says green-minded personal trainer Adam Boesel. “I hate running unless I’m dribbling a basketball,” he says. After growing accustomed to equipment-heavy workouts, Boesel had to get creative when training a group of Seattle clients in his outdoor “Not Boot Camp” last April through October. 

All you need to perform Boesel’s 30 to 45-minute workout (details at the bottom of this page) are “good shoes, a stopwatch, a water bottle and a park bench.” The exercises in his routine all use multiple muscle groups, so they’ll help burn calories and get you in shape for your favorite sports or activities. And, he says, “They also keep you from having to get to wet or dirty, so don't use a wet ground as an excuse to blow it off!”

Want to get started? Boesel recommends a week’s worth of outdoor workout locations:

Olympic Sculpture Park - Run from sculpture to sculpture or along the waterfront.Kerry Park - An incredible view and almost always empty.Golden Gardens - Try the routine in the sand!Discovery Park - Run the trails!Gasworks Park - Work your way up the hill and back down.

And if a group will help motivate you, check out these outdoor classes: Seattle Adventure Boot CampThe Healthy GoddessSeattle Weight Loss Boot Camp

Want to learn more about green fitness? Then you’re in luck! As part of our mission to bring you the best green content, we have added Adam Boesel as a regular contributor to A Fresh Squeeze.

Adam Boesel, a certified strength and conditioning specialist, recently moved from Seattle to Portland, Oregon with plans to open Total Body Turnaround, the country’s first green microgym. A mix of solar power and pedal power will provide electricity for the facility, which will add power back into the grid. His columns about green fitness will appear on our website twice monthly, and we will let you know about them in your regular weekly emails. So stay tuned!

Adam's "Not Boot Camp" Outdoor Workout Plan:

Start by jogging for thirty seconds to a minute, and then do two exercises at a time for 30 seconds each. (click on exercise names for instructional videos). Repeat entire series 3 times.

• Forward Lunge/Forearm to Instep
• Lateral Lunge 
• Jog or run for thirty seconds to a minute.
• Prone Pillar Bridge
• Forward Lunge with Lateral Flexion
• Jog or run for thirty seconds to a minute. 
• Push-ups (Tip: To make it easier, grip the back of a park bench instead of doing traditional push-ups with hands on the ground)
• Step Ups (Tip: Step up and down onto a stair or low bench and do equal reps on each leg. This will develop those hiking muscles!)