Humans Outside

Follow Gretchen on Instagram

Some of the good stuff:

[:36] A fun fact about me

[:54] In which I wax reminiscent about days of yore

[1:52] Why local news is so, so important

[2:35] My new local news project

[3:14] What outdoors continues to mean to me

[4:05] But I can't do everything

[5:23] And so it comes down to this

390 Best Of: Making Your Outdoor Time Better With Life in Five Senses (Gretchen Rubin, happiness researcher and author) May 28, 2024

Show notes

Do you have one person whose work you've looked to for inspiration? For me, that's Gretchen Rubin, author of the Happiness Project, and it's why I was so excited to get her on Humans Outside for a sit-down.

It was such a fun conversation that I want to make sure you get to hear it in this best of humans outside episode. I hope you love this interesting and inspirational conversation with Gretchen Rubin.

Connect with this episode:

Read Life in 5 Senses (affiliate link)

Visit Gretchen's website

Follow Gretchen on Facebook

Some of the good stuff:

[3:05] Gretchen Rubin's favorite outdoor space

[4:10] How Gretchen became someone who likes to go outside

[6:35] The problem of things taking effort

[8:47] Why Gretchen started her Life in 5 Senses project

[11:33] Does she still go to this place every day?

[11:38] How that practice is like a sit spot

[14:40] The freedom (and challenge) of doing something every day

[18:28] Gretchen's favorite sense and how her experiment impacted it

[19:41] What do we lose when we ignore our senses?

[22:27] All about Gretchen's daily outdoor project

[24:15] The difference between a chore and recess outside

[27:00] Why the freedom to choose your own rules is important (and hard)

[30:13] The inspiration for Gretchen's project

[33:17] How her five sense are influencing her outdoor project

[36:19] Personal habits that make her outdoor time better

[40:21] Gretchen's favorite outdoor moment

389: The power of 'yes' and following your gut to outdoor adventures (Mimi Zieman, author, doctor and outdoor adventurer) May 23, 2024

Show notes

What happens if you say "yes" to just one adventure or step out of your comfort zone? Maybe you'll create a single unforgettable experience. Or maybe that "yes" will lead you down a path where you encounter more interesting (and maybe a little scary) ideas and opportunities.

That's what today's guest, author and physician Mimi Zieman, found when she stepped out of her comfort zone in New York City to try something new. From the streets of the city to the base camp of Mt. Everest, Mimi discovered how saying yes to ideas and taking up space in the world can lead to a lifetime of growth.

In this episode, Mimi takes us on her journey from "yes" to Everest and gives us tips for finding our own space by following the power of that one word. Listen now.

Connect with this episode:

Some of the good stuff:

[2:42 ] - Mimi Zieman's favorite outdoor space

[04:22] - How Mimi went from city to nature

[06:27] - The challenges Mimi found up at Rocky Mountain Biological Lab.

[09:25] - How Mimi ended up in Nepal

[15:10] - The wild challenges on Everest

[21:45] - Here's how that Everest experience impacted Mimi.

[28:59] - Why you have to take up space in the world

[31:11] - Mimi's best advice for those wanting to say yes to more adventures

388: This is the best gift of my outdoor habit (Outdoor Diary) May 21, 2024

Show notes

There are a lot of reasons to spend time in nature, but as I reflect back on all of the things I've learned by heading outside every day for more than 2,500 days in a row, some takeaways stick out more than others.

The biggest thing I've learned by spending time outside is also both my favorite lesson and the thing I least expected.

What is it? Listen now!

Connect with this episode: Follow Humans Outside on Instagram

Some of the good stuff:

[00:45] The start of my outdoor challenge

[01:39] There were some benefits I expected

[02:21] And then there is one big benefit I didnt see coming

[03:33] I realized while doing this unpredictable thing

[04:15] 2016 Amy would NEVER

[05:08] It's time to face the change

387: The marvel of nature reclaiming everything, including me (Outdoor Diary) May 14, 2024

Show notes

There's something both comforting and amazing about the way nature takes the reigns no matter what happens. During a recent walk in the woods, I saw startling new growth on top of recent harm, and it was just the reminder I needed about nature's power to reclaim itself and me.

Maybe it's a reminder you need, too.

Listen now!

Connect with this episode:

Follow Emily on Instagram

Some of the good stuff:

[00:23] Here's what I did outside this week

[00:35] Nature just out there healing its own self

[01:37] Here's where I face the music

[02:32] And here's what I saw when I did

[04:03] Oh yeah, nature heals people, too

386: Chasing your hard and honoring your why through tough stuff outside (Emily Halnon, author and ultrarunner) May 09, 2024

Show notes

No matter how you define "hard," heading outside offers plenty of chances to tackle it. Many people who choose to tackle hard stuff outside are pushed to do so to honor some kind of "why."

For some of us, that "why" is health or to push our own personal boundaries. For others, the "why" is on behalf of someone else.

Ultrarunner Emily Halnon's "why" has everything to do with her mom, who died from an aggressive form of cancer in early 2020. To honor her she headed out to tackle a major challenge running on the Pacific Crest Trail (PCT). It's a story she's now shared in her new book "To The Gorge."

Through her journey, she learned the power of moving through hard stuff. In this episode you'll hear Emily share the things she's learned through that journey and how you can make yourself do hard things outside, too.

Connect with this episode:

Read Emily Halnon's new book, To The Gorge (affiliate link)

Visit Emily's website

Some of the good stuff:

[4:06] Emily Halnon's favorite outdoor space

[5:36] How Emily became someone who likes to go outside

[7:05] How Emily's mom inspired her running career

[10:29] All about Andrea Halnon's adventurous life

[15:27] The grief and grit in running across Oregon

[22:37] How to get mentally tough to prepare for a mega run

[30:01] Why hard stuff outside helps us prepare for life's challenges.

[33:04] The internal dialogue of pushing through the tough stuff

[35:07] Why it's not a bad thing to feel a little scared

[36:39] Emily's favorite outdoor moment

385: It sounds like late spring out there and I love it (Outdoor Diary) May 07, 2024

Show notes

There's something special about the way spring sounds in Alaska.

Maybe it's how dramatic the experience is as compared to the sounds of winter. Maybe it's that they're happy sounds that I can hear through my windows. Maybe it's that the weather is so much nicer than it had been, that I'm outside more to hear sounds at all.

Whatever the reason, I love the outdoor symphony. Here's what I've been noticing.

Listen now.

Connect with this episode:

Some of the good stuff:

[00:35] I'm feeling really grateful for my ears [00:52] Here's the source of my leaning into my senses challenge [01:46] The sounds of spring are basically the best [02:02] Here's a few examples [02:26] Birds, birds, birds. [03:31] Not birds but still souds [04:04] OK, winter has sounds, too

384: When I'm feeling overwhelmed, this counterintuitive outdoor step helps (Outdoor Diary) Apr 30, 2024

Show notes

I do it to myself and over and over again. That feeling of overwhelm sneaks right in, and it's entirely because of my own poor choices.

(You would think I'd learn my lesson, but I have not.)

So when the going gets crowed, what do I do? I think you're probably going to guess. But the wild thing is just how much adding more of it to my schedule helps.

Listen now.

Connect with this episode: