Living in a big city can be exciting. If you reside in New York City, Los Angeles, Chicago or San Francisco, you have access to some of the hottest and trendiest health clubs and group exercise classes right in your back yard. And even if you live in an urban part of Dallas, Seattle, Kansas City, Pittsburgh or any other large metropolitan area, you still have a lot of different workout options available. But what if running or walking outdoors is your favorite activity? Well, urban exercisers have to deal with the hustle and bustle of city life, which can put a damper on your exercise experience.
Urban living may give you the freedom to function without a car and easily walk to hip shopping, dining and entertainment destinations, but when you're trying to actually fit in a workout, navigating the city safely and efficiently can be a bit of a challenge. After all, you're up against pollution, traffic, possible crime, uneven sidewalks and other treacherous conditions, not to mention all the traffic and intersections that stop you multiple times mid-run.
Below are six tips for navigating the urban landscape, understanding the possible risks associated with metropolitan running and walking, and using the city to your workout's advantage!
1. Park it. This is an obvious one, but it's too important to ignore. City parks are made for running and walking! They're usually free of traffic and noise, and many parks have better-quality trails and pavement than the streets do. Thanks to fewer cars and taxis and a higher density of trees and plants, these areas are also likely to have less pollution. This is especially important because exercise increases your breathing rate, making air quality that much more important.
- Stay Safe Tip: Air quality in cities is usually poorer than more rural areas because of the concentration of traffic, industry and people. In fact, a 2004 review conducted by the University of Brisbane in Australia that examined pollution studies from around the world showed that air with low concentrations of pollutants affected those exercising just as much as air with high concentrations of pollutants impacted non-exercisers. Furthermore, another study, this one published in The New England Journal of Medicine with data taken from the Women's Health Initiative, found that women who lived in areas with high air pollution—even in the form of very small particles called soot—were more likely to die of heart attacks than other women who lived in less pollutant areas. Before you work out, be sure to check the air quality forecast along with the weather. Don't exercise outside on low-quality air days, and avoid high-traffic times like rush hour. In general, air quality is better in colder weather than the hot summer months.
- City Fitness Tip: The bigger the park, the better your workouts, as it will give you more places to explore and more foliage to release cleaner air. Check out your local parks and recreation department online. Most cities will list all of their parks, including its amenities (like bathrooms and drinking fountains), hours and features. This allows you to find the best open area for you and your workout, and it might also allow you to discover an entirely new place to walk or run. There may be a hidden gem just a few blocks away that you've never stumbled upon!
2. Run in the place where you live. While parks are great for getting away, sometimes straying from the park can be a good thing when you need variety or a change of pace (pun intended). Jog or power walk through a residential area of town that has an interesting history or one that you find particularly charming or beautiful. Residential areas usually have less traffic and more flora and fauna than commercial areas.
- Stay Safe Tip: Be alert to any suspicious activity or unusual situations while you're working out. While crime can and does happen anywhere, some cities are more known for their crime than others (Detroit, Memphis and Miami topped Forbes' recent "America's Most Dangerous Cities" list). But no matter where you live, it's always a good idea to run during daylight hours, carry your ID, and bring a phone and enough money for an emergency—just in case. Always trust your gut. Get more outdoor exercise safety tips.
- City Fitness Tip: Pretend that you don't live in your city, and ask yourself where you would go if you were a tourist looking for a workout that could double as sight-seeing. Pick the closest spot for your regular run/walk, and map out a couple other options that are farther away for a future trip. Then grab a friend and see your city in a new active way! Or, if your city doesn't have many safe tourist spots that are suitable for running or walking, turn your trip to the park on its head by running or walking to the park and then using it as a site for strength exercises such as lunges, squats, push-ups and triceps dips on a park bench. Or do some yoga or stretching at the park as a complement to the cardiovascular exercise it took to get there. The possibilities are endless!
3. Play red light, green light. Next time you're stuck at a stoplight, don't just stop or jog in place, impatiently waiting for the light to turn green. Use the break to do some squats or use that street pole for a few one-armed push-ups or that city bench for an assisted plank. If you need a break, enjoy the interruption and do a quick hamstring or shoulder stretch. Instead of fighting against the city's nature, why not embrace it?
- Stay Safe Tip: While exercising on pavement or asphalt isn't too dangerous (except for the occasional pothole or bad driver), running on the road or sidewalk can be hard on the joints. In fact, concrete is one of the worst shock-absorbing surfaces. Asphalt absorbs more shock, but it's still not great (grass, wood chips and dirt are best). So when you can do so safely, jog on the asphalt.
- City Fitness Tip: Use traffic and stoplights as interactive interval training. After a short walking or jogging warm-up, run hard to a stoplight and see how far you can go without having to take a break because of the traffic. When you hit a yellow light, perform a set of upper-body exercises such as wall pushups on a city building or triceps dips using a park bench. If you get stuck at a red light, hit that lower body with basic squats or lunges. You may get a few curious looks from people, but in a big city, most people have seen stranger things, right?
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