Listen to the Humans Outside Podcast

Outdoor Diary: Sticking With New Things Outside Even When They’re Hard

As the season changes from fall to winter, Amy and her family are tapping into seasonal activities — and remembering that they’re still very bad at them. In this episode of the Outdoor Diary, Amy ponders what happens when you hit a sport that isn’t your comfort zone, and shares advice from her sons, Huck and Dave, on how to stay motivated and finish what you started.

Some of the good stuff:

[:28] A weird time of year in Alaska

[1:05] Amy’s evolving opinions on skiing

[3:26] A Bushatz skiing adventure

[5:45] Advice on motivation from Dave and Huck

[6:25] Where to find Humans Outside

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How to Use Light to Deal with the Winter Blues (Dr. Michael Terman)

It’s a familiar feeling for many of us over the winter months: the light fades, the darker days settle in and your mood dips. It can feel hard to get outside and hard to do really anything. Motivating yourself off the couch becomes an even bigger challenge than normal.

But there’s steps you can take to counter those feelings. In this episode Dr. Michael Terman, an expert in treating seasonal depression with light therapy, shares his best tips and findings for getting through the winter months with your mood and sanity intact.

Some of the good stuff:

[3:35] Dr. Michael Terman’s favorite outdoor space

[5:23] How he got into the study of light therapy and circadian rhythm

[6:41] What his research found

[10:52] What light has to do with depression

[16:28] Where is it a problem?

[19:15] Does this have to be a problem year after year?

[26:33] What does going outside have to do with it?

[34:09] What is a light box and how to find one

[44:44] Dr. Terman’s favorite outdoor moment

Connect with this episode:

Read about the Center for Environmental Therapeutics

Take the circadian rhythm assessment

Follow the Center for Environmental Therapeutics on Facebook

Follow Humans Outside on Instagram

Follow Humans Outside on Facebook

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Outdoor Diary: Building Outdoor Time Into a Busy Travel Schedule

You might find yourself traveling again for work or otherwise after many, many months of staying home. You’ve gotten into a home-focused routine, and that includes your outside time. How do you keep your nature habit going when you hit the road?

That’s something Amy battled this week as she took her first work trip in a long time. In this Outdoor Diary she talks about getting still making time for heading into nature anyway.

Some of the good stuff:

[:26] Amy’s travels

[2:13] Getting outside on travel days

[3:19] Heading outside between meetings

[3:57] Being intentional

[5:04] Where to find Humans Outside

Connect with this episode:

Follow Humans Outside on Facebook

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Subscribe to the Humans Outside newsletter for a chance to win a free decal

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What Opting Out of ‘Should’ Has to Do With Heading Outside (Cait Flanders)

It started with a year-long shopping ban and a decision to downsize. But like so many big life changes, the decision to shift who she was and how she interacted with the world had a much bigger impact than she expected. Now Cait Flanders, author of the best-selling book Year of Less, has morphed her “less” habit to one of purposeful opt-outs, choosing to say “no” to the cultural expectations that keep her life from looking the best way it can for her.

So what does that have to do with going outside? Both her book Adventures in Opting Out: A Field Guide to Leading an Intentional Life, and her podcast with a similar title, Opting Out, take a look at saying “no” to things that won’t help you make the life you want — whatever you believe that to be — and “yes” to what will move you forward.

In this episode of Humans Outside, Cait takes us on her own journey, giving us opt-out tips and teaching us what it means to make space for your own joy.

Some of the good stuff:

[3:22] Cait’s favorite outdoor space

[4:54] How Cait became someone who likes to go outside

[7:59] All about her shopping ban

[16:46] Preparing for the stories you wish you were telling yourself

[18:38] The decision to opt-out

[24:37] The importance of helpers

[27:04] Where do you find such a helper?

[32:25] What hiking has to do with going outside

[36:56] Can you pursue life with a nature emphasis without opting out?

[41:00] Does spending time in nature help you understand your opt-out choices?

[43:27] Tips for opting out

[52:03] Cait’s favorite outdoor gear

[55:34] Cait’s favorite outdoor moment

Connect with this episode:

Visit Cait Flanders’ website

Buy Cait’s book, Adventures In Opting Out: A Field Guide to Leading an Intentional Life

Buy Cait’s book, The Year of Less

Listen to Cait’s podcast

Follow Cait on Instagram

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Outdoor Diary: Getting Outside When You Don’t Feel Like Getting Outside

What do you do if you just don’t feel like going outside? How do you talk yourself into it? This week Amy was dealing with a nasty cold and just wasn’t feeling that nature vibe — especially not in the highs of 40 degrees they are rocking in Alaska right now.

That had her thinking about what to do when you’re trying to motivate yourself out the door when you just don’t feel like going outside. Listen to this episode to learn more.

Some of the good stuff:

[:27] When you don’t feel like getting outside

[2:14] Check in with yourself

[3:14] Remember your “why”

[3:49] Consider a favorite activity

[4:21] Think about your goal

Connect with this episode:

Follow Humans Outside on Facebook

Follow Humans Outside on Instagram

Subscribe to the Humans Outside newsletter for a chance to win a free decal

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Finding Your ‘Why’ In Nature: Here’s How He Did It (Mikah Meyer)

Today, LGBTQ outdoor advocate Mikah Meyer is known for his work representing his community and advocating for inclusion in nature. But that hasn’t always been the case. In fact, when Mikah set out on his journey to become the youngest person to visit the over 400 National Park units in the U.S., inclusivity advocacy wasn’t his goal at all.

MIkah’s story is not just one of growing into an advocacy role, it also is a perfect demonstration of how immersing ourselves in nature can help us discover what we really want to be doing with our lives and who we want to be doing it for. In this powerful interview Mikah reveals the steps on that journey, empowering us to find out our own whys just like he did.

Some of the good stuff:

[3:55] MIkah Meyer’s favorite outdoor space

[7:11] How MIkah became someone who likes to go outside

[9:30] The importance of the stories we tell ourselves

[10:43] Mikah’s original ‘why’

[17:20] Changing goals

[20:09] Finding his focus of advocacy

[26:05] Finding a vocation

[29:21] The role of nature in making that happen

[36:13] How that practice can help everyday life

[37:45] What’s next for Mikah

[44:07] Mikah’s favorite and most essential outdoor gear

Connect with this episode:

Visit Mikah’s website

Follow Mikah on Instagram

Follow Mikah on Facebook

Follow Mikah on Twitter

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Outdoor Diary: The Stories We Tell Ourselves About Who We Are

We all tell ourselves stories about ourselves. Sometimes they’re true, sometimes they’re not. Whatever the case may be, don’t let any story stand in the way of you doing something you want. Listen to Amy unpack this concept in this installment of her outdoor diary.

Some of the good stuff:

[:27] The unintentional theme of Season 4

[1:17] Outside is for everyone—even you!

[2:05] The stories Amy tells herself

[4:12] Tell yourself stories, but make sure they’re true

[5:10] Where to find Humans Outside

Connect with this episode:

Follow Humans Outside on Facebook

Follow Humans Outside on Instagram

Subscribe to the Humans Outside newsletter for a chance to win a free decal

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How a Pee Cloth Is Making One Small Step for Inclusivity (Anastasia Allison)

I know what you’re thinking. “What is a ‘pee cloth?’” And, maybe, “do I want to know?” And possibly also “gross.”

If you’ve ever been a woman trying to pee outside you know that the struggle is real and the solutions are sparse. Your options for good hygiene while taking care of business are limited to: a drip-shake dry method, which is ineffective at best; packing out dirty toilet paper, which is not great for obvious reasons; or using some kind of fabric that you plan to wash later. (And if you’re a dude who is thinking “what about those female urination devices like a ‘She-wee?’” — great idea for solving the squatting issue, but it doesn’t actually impact this hygiene conundrum at all.)

So what’s a girl to do? That’s exactly the problem Anastasia Allison was trying to solve when she got the idea for Kula Kloth. Instead of using an ugly piece of fabric, why not create and produce a product for women that can make using the outdoors not just more sanitary, but at the same time also create community and be fun.

In this episode Anastasia shares her infectious joy, personal story of getting close to nature — including the time she literally stole toilet paper during her first-ever backpacking trip — and a window into how she is working through her small brand to make heading outside more accessible for everyone.

Some of the good stuff:

[2:50] Anastasia Allison’s favorite outdoor space

[5:00] How Anastasia became someone who likes to go outside

[9:35] How a change of identity changes your perspective

[14:55] How Kula was born

[20:30] The danger of over-thinking

[27:55] What exactly is a Kula Kloth?

[34:35] What has running Kula taught her about inclusivity?

[40:00] Why Kula is a small step for inclusivity

[44:31] That time she stole toilet paper — like, literally stole it.

[53:49] Anastasia’s favorite and most essential outdoor gear

[56:45] Anastasia’s favorite outdoor moment

Connect with this episode:

Follow Kula Kloth on Instagram (seriously, do it)

Follow Anastasia Allison on Instagram

Shop Kula Cloth

Sign-up for a Kula Academy class

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Outdoor Diary: I Just Hit 1,500 Days Outside, and I Still Need the Habit Push

Is there ever a time that keeping a habit with intentionality and focus is simply easy? Amy hit 1,500 days outside this month, and she noticed that the answer is, well, not really.

But there’s a reason for that — a solution. In this episode of the weekly Outdoor Diary, Amy talks about what it takes to keep a focused habit going.