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Nearly three in five Americans have transformed from “indoor people” to “outdoor people” during the pandemic, according to new research.
A survey of 2,000 respondents over the age of 21 revealed that “indoor people” have added 22 minutes a week to their outdoor regimen since last year.
The top reason for venturing outside? For 67%, it’s to get away from the people they’ve been stuck indoors with.
The survey also looked at the personality differences between those who identified as “indoor” and “outdoor” types before the pandemic.
Those who identified as “indoor” types were more likely to be morning people (61%), more likely to claim their lives are “mostly perfect” (71%) and were more hesitant to try new things out of fear of failure (68%).
Overall, results suggest that the average respondent went outside for around five hours per week last year.
That translates to 260 hours, or 10 whole days, over the length of 2020.
“Recent scientific reports have found that spending just 120 minutes per week in nature can decrease inflammation, boost activity in infection-fighting white blood cells and lower blood pressure,” said Luba Pashkovskaya, CEO of Verv. “That kind of noticeable health benefit is especially important now, when so many people are struggling both mentally and physically from their recent pandemic experiences.”
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Surprisingly, the past year has even turned “indoor people” into social butterflies, as they’re already planning to go outside for socially distanced hangouts with family (57%) and friends (56%).
And their newly-acquired thirst for fresh air is also reflected in respondents' workout choices, as they now tend to prefer walking (51%), running (47%) and biking (42%) over activities that can be done indoors, like yoga (37%) and pilates (26%).
When it comes to walking, Americans are aiming to take 2,500 steps a day, nearly five times less than the 10,000 of myth.
The study also revealed that last year, the typical respondent spent five hours per week doing physical activity, at an overall average of 240 hours for the entire year — close to the same amount of time they spent outdoors, and more than the four hours per week that they considered to be optimal for adult health.
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Overall, the average respondent estimated that a daily workout should be 33 minutes long at above-average intensity.
When it comes to tracking activity, almost 40% of respondents rely on mobile apps and 46% rely on smartwatches.
source: people.com
