With Summer in full swing, it’s great to be spending more time outside and being closer to nature has huge benefits on our mental wellbeing – getting outside for just 20-30 minutes a day is enough to see reduced stress levels and improved mood. With this in mind, it makes perfect sense to combine our workouts with our time outdoors. There are plenty of free fitness groups and classes in Exeter and the surrounding areas, so we’ve found some of our favourites to help you find a physical activity to enjoy outdoors this Summer.
Parkrun
Whether you’re new to running or an experienced runner, parkruns are free, community 5k run events that take place across the world every week on Saturday mornings. Parkrun offers a positive and welcoming experience so everyone is welcome to join, whatever their ability. There are plenty of parkruns in the local area to choose from, whether you join the same one every week or fancy running somewhere new nearby, you won’t need to travel far for your next 5k.
Visit https://www.parkrun.org.uk/ to find out more.
Park Yoga
Park Yoga is a charity that provides free outdoor yoga sessions every Sunday morning around the UK during the Summer months (May to September) – weather dependent! Park Yoga welcomes people of all ages and abilities, with the aim to encourage people to take part in activities outdoors which will be beneficial to their health and wellbeing. If you can’t join in person, they are also offering free weekly 20-30 minute long Park Yoga Shorts on their YouTube channel.
Visit https://parkyoga.co/ to find out more.
Free Moovement
Free Moovement is an Exeter based initiative aiming to get people to make healthier habits together by motivating and supporting each other through group physical activity, to help improve both physical health and mental wellbeing. The groups are run by a team of passionate volunteers who hold weekly sessions in various local parks, offering a friendly, welcoming and supportive environment to get active – resulting in a healthier community.
Visit https://freemoovement.com/ to find out more.
Walking for Health with Westbank
Walking for Health is a walking scheme taking place across England and local charity Westbank are running sessions in Exeter and the surrounding areas, offering a range of walks (short, medium and long) to suit all abilities. Anyone can turn up and join in – it’s free, fun and friendly and offers the chance to get outdoors and explore the local area whilst making new friends!
Visit https://www.westbank.org.uk/walking-for-health to find out more.
Can Do Active Couch to 5k
Want to get into running but don’t know where to start? The Can Do Active Couch to 5k training programme is a guided training plan that will ease you into running 5k in just 12 weeks. Many complete the programme alone but joining a local group provides extra support and motivation along the way. Our first Couch to 5k group is starting in September and we will be running both a weekday and a weekend group to make it accessible for everyone.
If you’d like to register your interest to join our Couch to 5k group, please contact us and we’ll let you know as soon as we’ve set a date.
