Summer is a polarizing time of the year.  I love summer.  The long days.  The less clothing.  Swimming. Playing ball outside.  Lots of vitamin D.  Throwing open your windows with the early sunrise in the morning over coffee and a good book.

Summer is a time we visit friends and family.  It’s often a time of going on vacation and interrupting daily habits and patterns.  Going down the shore (or the beach for the non New Jerseyans), heading to the country for holiday weekends and quick jaunts to local summer getaways.  

But summer can also be a lonely time as well.  It tends to be a time that we reminisce and reflect.  When we aren’t traveling for a vacation rendezvous and we are home, it can be a case of FOMO.  And when we are at home, things tend to slow down with our regular schedules and life can feel stagnant and overly quiet.

And since we are thrown off our routines, we can get lazy and unproductive.  We can feel like we are missing social interactions that we would get when school is in session and the support in our daily lives is regular.  Social interaction is a huge key for most people when activities and energy levels are not optimal.  Having a strong support system can provide a huge mental boost that fortifies work output on all types of levels.

I find that keeping some sort of social engagement as often as we can feeds our serotonin levels and evens out the interruptions in our regular work weeks and busy weekends.  Even when it’s challenging to find a common time with a friend it’s beneficial to go do things that have a crowd:  movies, museums and sporting events. Higher levels of positive hormone output will result in better sleep, good recovery from physical exertion and lower stress levels.

Another option is to learn something that is new and has been pushed back for a while.  Learning to surf—or other water sports—or play an instrument is always a wonderful and challenging endeavor to undertake during the summer.  The body’s ability to learn new neuro pathways helps to keep the brain active and young and builds new neurons. 

Going on local hikes is another good way to absorb some good Vitamin D and perhaps meditate in nature.  Hiking on uneven terrain is an excellent way to build multi-planar (think moving in unpredictable ways) strength and connect with nature.  For those in urban settings, it’s a nice respite from the concrete jungle.  Bike rides can fall under this same umbrella.

For those parents out there, a beach day of playing in the sand with your kids can get your body moving like an animal all over the ground while breathing in some ultra purifying sea minerals.  Sand creates a very unfamiliar terrain for the feet and ankles when standing and also the wrists and shoulders if you’re on your hands and knees.  The unevenness of the surface of sand is fantastic at improving joint stability and mobility and can create new muscle tissue that flat surfaces fail to provide.  

Call to mind that while the summer can be a very mercurial season for many with the highs and lows, there are a cadre of options that don’t have to be more than an hour or two away.   Day trips around one’s city or neighborhood that can take them on a simple but memorable adventure can be efficient for the body and cleansing for the mind and improve overall mood.  

Beating the summer blues is not always easy, but there are many simple formulas and recipes to create good vibes that are closer than we think.  All the cumulative gym work and home exercises have prepped the body to take on new activities and have equipped the mind with the confidence it needs.  Ultimately taking action with physical challenges feeds our brain and improves our outlook on life.  

So when gym work gets to be a little claustrophobic in the height of the summer and you’re looking for a deviation from the norm, take a risk and try something that might not get the time during the life’s craziness.  After all, what’s the all the work in the gym for?