Do you think geography/climate has a role in your fitness?

[Runninggirl]

Checking in from Atlanta also but loving the hot and humidity except for July and August track workouts! The only thing that gets me outdoors in the winter is my running group. Last night I looked like a polar bear at track with two shirts and a jacket to start off with. In the summer, I'm outside as much as possible.

[tigerbaby]

Originally Posted by sherry7899

I wish there was somewhere to live where it's about 70 degrees all year with no humidity. I hate the heat and humidity, and I hate the cold/snow. It seems like in NJ, we practically skip over spring some years and go straight to the humid weather. I'd like to live somewhere where you don't need winter coats and can go swimming all year round. Swimming is really the only outdoor exercise I like.

I don't know if I'd exercise outside more if I lived in a different climate since I've never lived anywhere else.

We don't want to retire here, but do not know where we want to go....we love the ocean and would still want to be within driving distance of it.

Colorado looks utterly gorgeous, but I'd want to be near the ocean, and getting snow in September and May would not be fun for me! We have friends who moved there, so they've told us about the weather.

Sherry

San Diego, Sherry. It's beautiful weather year round. You have the ocean, and the constant ocean breeze.

I live in possibly the worst city in America in the desert southwest. It gets as high as 120 in the summer with an even higher heat index. Since climate seems to be changing everywhere, we now get humidity along with that as opposed to the dry heat of years past so it's pretty miserable. Summer nights are even worse with no reprieve and a high of around 95.

While winters here are mild (it's been roughly 80 degrees all week), there are no seasons, only hot and cool. No one ventures out during the summer because it's so ridiculously hot.

Add to the fact that my great city is the number 2 fattest city in America. If you remember Jamie Oliver's show where he tried to clean up a city's eating, that city was number 1 on the same list. It's a border town so there's plenty of mexican food with lots of beans, tortilla, rice, and lard.

There are a few gyms here but I feel gym membership is expensive at nearly $50 per month at some and considering we recently ranked number 1 in the highest unemployment rate in the country most people can't afford that "luxury".

Because it is a border town, we of course have a large hispanic culture with the mexican border only 15 minutes away. The Mexican culture is different in how they move about. What I mean by that is they don't always follow the rules of the road whether in a car, bike, or walking. It's not uncommon for them to literally walk out in front of your car last minute or fly through a stop sign on their bike. Please understand it's not meant as a dig towards Mexicans, it is just their way and how they move about in Mexico so it seems normal to them. Unfortunately it doesn't work really well here so every year several people are killed, mostly on bicycles, and some pedestrians. To ride a bike outdoors is practically suicide as this is not a bike friendly town.

Adding even more stress is the fact that our population nearly doubles in the winter due to winter visitors escaping their cold winters. They're retired with an equal mix of those that are very fit and those that are very ill. Obviously the town welcomes the winter visitors because it's helps our bad economy a few months out of the year, but we also spend more time catering to them then the needs of the residents so there is literally nothing for the young people to do here except hang out at the mall or see a movie. There's a lot of delinquency here between all the gangs, street racing and desert shananigans so our youth continue to get fatter and fatter with no emphasis on health or fitness in this town. A few years ago there was a gang fight at the mall and 2 teenagers were shot and killed and everyone pretty much kept their kids away from the mall at night for a while. Most areas in town aren't safe to walk at night because of the drug dealing and gangs.

They've been trying to start a citywide program to handle the obesity rate here but no one cares. It's really sad and even more depressing when you live in a town that is collectively lethargic and inactive. Even mentioning that you exercise brings weird looks from others so I don't discuss it. The landscape is flat desert with nothing pretty to look, unlike the beautiful high desert, and is very uninspiring.

So in answer to the question, yes, the town I live in greatly plays a role in fitness.

I think I need to move! LOL!

[stitchywitch]

I think where you live definitely plays a role! I have read that people living in dense areas have far lower rates of obesity due to the increased amount of walking. We live in the city, only own one car, and walk almost everywhere (I only put 5000 miles on the car last year!) It's sometimes inconvenient, and it's certainly more expensive to live here, but those are sacrifices that we made because we love the lifestyle.

My husband bikes to work, and it almost never gets too cold to do so. I would do the same if I didn't work at home! I don't do many outdoor type activities (not a lot of outdoor step!) so other than all the walking I do everything inside.

[susan p]

In my experience, it plays a huge role. I moved from FLAT Indiana to Appalachian Pennsylvania. Running here is a whole different animal than running there. I love to run in Indiana when we're there for visits, everything is so FLAT and wide, and the shoulders on the roads are like another lane!

Also, we live in the country now rather thn the city, so that means no sidewalks, which makes it less walking friendly, but it's also very refreshing to be breathing piney mountain air instead of urban exhaust fumes.

As far as hot goes, IN and PA are both hot and humid in the summer, but PA has significantly milder winters. I really don't mind the cold at all; I'll gear up and get out there, no problem. It's the hot and humid that slays me and makes me lose my workout mojo, even for indoor workouts! ugh!

[paideiamom]

My issue is also with the congestion of the city.

I am in a walker friendly area, but only the immediate area is walker friendly. Atlanta as a whole is very walker/runner/biker unfriendly.

San Diego would be my place to retire. I thought it was a lot more expensive than it is. DH and I were looking at condo prices and were very surprised at how reasonable they were.

I used to say I wouldn't live in CA because I am afraid it will fall into the ocean when "The Big One" comes, but with earthquakes in Georgia and on the East Coast now, what the heck. Throw in our tornadoes and hurricanes and I think it is a push.

[Keepfitgirl]

I live in the UK (not known for very hot weather!) and near the sea. I love walking and it does make me get out more knowing I can walk 15 minutes and be by the sea. However, if the weather is boiling hot (it does happen honest!), I feel uncomfortable walking and more lethargic. I also don't like the rain.

Emma

[Lexy]

I don't like hot and humid at all. My body hates it and I sweat so easily that I'm uncomfortable often. Yay for the flat lands of the Midwest where we lived for 18 years. Boo to the longer heat/humidity and numerous hills of NC. Once the weather cools here, I am walking MUCH faster each morning. The first day it happens, I often think, "hey, I don't have a disease after all." It's THAT different.

And for some reason, there is NO BREEZE. EVER. Charlotte is like a dead zone with the most stagnant air all summer. But then, some people like it above 90 and humid. I'm just not one of them.

Definitely a country girl vs a city girl too. Even though most of the country doesn't have sidewalks, there are usually numerous trails and parks to walk which I like much better than dealing with cars and intersections.

[Jane P.]

I don't have air conditioning so, in the summer, I have to get up really early (whether outdoors or in) to get my workout in. Of course, I can't do an outdoor workout if the weather is really bad, but the winters are quite mild here in southern Colorado. Since, it's east of the mountains we don't get all that much snow.

[Mopsy]

Originally Posted by Keepfitgirl

I live in the UK (not known for very hot weather!) and near the sea. I love walking and it does make me get out more knowing I can walk 15 minutes and be by the sea. However, if the weather is boiling hot (it does happen honest!), I feel uncomfortable walking and more lethargic. I also don't like the rain.

Emma

I've done several "walking holidays" in the UK, resulting in lots of photos of me in my rain gear We'd be out walking (i.e. hiking), it would start to rain, and everyone would just stop, open their packs, pull out their rain gear, and continue on. So funny how I probably wouldn't walk much in the windy rain here (unless I were caught in it), but I'd spend money to do that a few thousand miles away. It's where I really learned to enjoy that afternoon tea!

[Eibhinn]

It absolutely does. Where I grew up, the weather is extremely variable throughout the year. And, well, a bit extreme. Summers it is very humid and frequently between 28 to 38 degrees C (about 80-100 F). Winters the temperature can easily go down to -20 or -30 C (about 0 to -20 F), even colder with windchill, and there is huge amounts of snow. In storms it's not uncommon to get a foot of snow falling in an hours time. I love it, but the weather can make outside exercise difficult. I fatigue easily when it is very hot, and the snow and ice make it difficult to get around.

I've moved somewhere with less extreme weather - it's cooler in the summer and warmer in the winter. But it rains a lot. I think the crazy and unpredictible weather at home played a factor in my getting interested in fitness DVDs in the first place, and even in my new home they are the only way I can exercise consistently year-round. By comparison, my partner refuses to workout at home or to videos and typically gains 10 pounds over the winter, then loses it in the summer. My weight stays consistent year round.