Outdoor Physical Activity Guide

Move more, feel the difference

Download the 2021 Outdoor Physical Activity Guide and discover lots of opportunities for you and your family to get active in the great outdoors across East Dorset and local areas.

The Activate Coast and Greenspace programme aims to encourage people to get more active through a wide range of coast and countryside based activities. When it comes to exercise, you can’t beat getting out and about in the fresh air!

As a result of the COVID-19 pandemic, all activities follow social distancing guidelines. It is essential that you book onto the activity in advance and to be aware of COVID-19 restrictions that may be in place at time of booking.

The guide details activities from April 2021 through until April 2022.

Regular physical activity can help protect you from serious diseases such as obesity, heart disease, cancer, mental illness, diabetes and arthritis.

How much is enough?

To keep healthy experts recommend:

Children should aim for 60+ minutes of moderate intensity aerobic activity each day. This can be achieved by walking to school, playing in the playground or riding a scooter.
Adults should aim for at least 150 minutes of moderate intensity activity, in bouts of 10minutes or more, each week. This can also be achieved by 75 minutes of vigorous activity across the week or a mixture of moderate and vigorous.

Benefits of exercising outdoors

Exercising in an outdoor environment can improve mood, reduce levels of depression, reduce stress, lower blood pressure and heart rate. What better reason to get out there and enjoy the beautiful countryside that Dorset has to offer?

What does moderate activity mean?

Moderate activity will raise your heart rate and make you breathe faster and feel warmer. One way to tell if you’re exercising at a moderate level is if you can still talk but can’t sing the words to a song.