How To Do the 1000 Hours Outside Challenge

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How We Did the 1000 Hours Outside Challenge (In 11 Months!)

The Challenge of 1000 Hours Outside

Let’s start with the big picture. 1000 hours outside in a year breaks down to about 2.7 hours per day for 365 days. On the surface, 2.7 hours a day may not sound like much. But in today’s world, it’s harder than you might think. Consider that 2.7 hours a day needs to happen rain or shine, in frigid temperatures or sweltering heat. That’s the true challenge when learning how to do the 1000 Hours Outside Challenge!

Why 1000 Hours Outside?

The 1000 Hours Outside movement was founded by Ginny Yurich, who is passionate about helping families reconnect, reclaim childhood, and live fuller lives. For more information about Ginny’s heart and the history of the movement, check out her website.

For us, I wanted to take our family culture from being outside often to being outside no matter what. I wanted to to build resiliency in myself and my children, embrace nature as a place to refill, and reconnect with a sense of wonder in our daily lives. This quote captures my mindset about being outdoors:

Disclaimer: I am not affiliated with 1000 Hours Outside, and this post is not endorsed by them. I’m simply sharing our personal experience with this challenge in hopes it might inspire others and help them understand how to do the 1000 Hours Outside challenge.

How We Took on the 1000 Hours Outside Challenge

A Little Background
When I decided to take on this challenge, my oldest child had just turned 1. Within three weeks, I discovered I was pregnant with our second child, due at the end of the summer. Talk about timing! So, for the next 11 months, I tackled the 1000 Hours Outside Challenge while caring for a toddler and being pregnant in the hottest months of the year. It wasn’t exactly what I’d planned, but a challenge is a challenge!

As a stay-at-home mom, I was also working part-time from home as a Developmental Specialist. To make this work, I had to account for my toddler’s afternoon naps, my work, and our family’s other commitments. We couldn’t spend all day outside even if we wanted to.

Step 1: Plan and Prepare

My first tip is simple: plan and prepare based on your family’s lifestyle, work schedule, and local climate. Look ahead to the entire year, and break the big goal down into monthly goals. This will make the overall goal of 1000 hours feel more manageable when you’re figuring out how to do the 1000 Hours Outside Challenge.

Living in the Midwest, we experience both harsh winters and sweltering summers. And pretty much everything in between, sometimes from one day to the next! I assumed the winter months would be the toughest, so I followed the recommended plan for harsh winters found on the 1000 Hours Outside Instagram account. However, I wasn’t prepared for the record high heat and drought conditions during the summer, making it extremely challenging to get 4-5 hours a day outside in 95°F while 7-9 months pregnant.

Here’s the alternative plan for those learning how to do the 1000 Hours Outside challenge in hot climates:

Start With the End in Mind

Once you have your weather and schedule considered, think about how you’ll break down the 1000 hour goal. You can use either of the original 1000 Hours Outside monthly schedules or follow one that has hours a little more spread out. For us, the weather in the Midwest is unpredictable, so I created a more flexible monthly breakdown for both harsh winters and scorching summers.

If you’re planning to track your hours over the year, deciding how you’ll track and what counts as “outside” is key. (Join the 1000 Hours Outside Facebook group to see some of the ongoing debates about what counts as “outside”—it can get pretty interesting!) For example, does sleeping in a tent count? Some people say no; we fall into that camp. But don’t worry, we still hit 1000 hours without any camping trips! 

How to Track Your 1000 Hours Outside

What Hours to Track

This is a personal decision for each family. You can choose to track hours individually for each family member or as a group. I opted to track the hours my toddler and I spent outside together. I didn’t track time spent outside without him, or when my husband took him outside on his own. We also didn’t count transitional time (e.g., walking across a parking lot or getting in/out of the car). For us, it was all about the intentional outdoor time when figuring out how to do the 1000 Hours Outside Challenge.

How to Track the Hours

Check out my in-depth How to Track Hours for the 1000 Hours Outside Challenge guide!

There are a lot of ways to track your hours, and the best method is the one that’s simplest for you. I personally used the 1000 Hours Outside mobile app (available for iOS and Android). It’s now a membership-based app, but the timer function made it super easy to start and stop the clock when we went outside and when we came back inside. Plus, the app keeps a running tally of your daily, monthly, and yearly totals—super convenient for anyone looking for a simple way to track hours when figuring out how to do the 1000 Hours Outside Challenge.

Other (Free) Options for Tracking Hours

• Hang a paper calendar by the door most used to go outside and write down the time as you go outside and the time as you come back inside. Add up daily and weekly totals.
• Use the stopwatch feature on your smartphone and write down the time in your phone’s notes app or on a piece of paper. Add up the total weekly.
• Use a timer app like iHour (for iOS users) or Simple Time Tracker (Android).

Another way to record hours is to use a printable tracker. You can choose among many FREE PRINTABLE TRACKERS available on the 1000 Hours Outside website to keep a visual log of your progress. Here’s what our tracker looked like at the end of the year. I would record our daily hours in the 1000 Hours Outside app and then color in the tracker at the end of the month with that month’s total.

What Gear Do You Need to Get Outside?

The answer to this question depends entirely on your location and climate. Here in the Midwest, where we experience all four seasons, we needed a variety of gear for different times of the year. Here’s what worked best for us when we were figuring out how to do the 1000 Hours Outside Challenge:

• Winter: Down insulated snowsuit, waterproof snow boots, insulated mittens, warm hat, wool socks, non-cotton base layers
• Spring: Rain boots, water-resistant bib overalls, raincoat, warm hat
• Summer: Swimsuit, sun shirt, adjustable sun hat, rubber sandals
• Fall: Rain jacket, rain boots, warm hats, sweatshirts

Other essentials for on-the-go:

• Stainless steel water bottles
• Cooler bags for packing snacks
• On-the-go snacks (check out our favorite granola bar recipe!)
• Towels (for water play or wiping off wet playground equipment)
• Extra set of clothes in the car

Best Tips for Getting More Hours Outside

1. Eat Meals Outside
Whether it’s at a park, on your front porch, or at a restaurant with outdoor seating, eating outside is an easy way to rack up outdoor hours when you’re figuring out how to do the 1000 Hours Outside Challenge.

2. Front-load Your Monthly Hours
Don’t procrastinate! Start the month strong by spending as much time outdoors as possible early in the month. This will help you avoid scrambling later.

3. Plan All-Day Adventures
Pick a few days a month for all-day outdoor excursions—think trips to the zoo, a local metro park, or a longer hike.

4. Dress for the Weather
Being prepared with the right clothing can drastically extend your outdoor time. Whether you need layers for winter or swimsuits for summer, make sure you’re dressed appropriately.

5. Get Together with Other Outdoor Families
Friends make outdoor time even more fun! Meet at a local park, host a campfire, or organize a pool day to boost your outdoor hours while you’re learning how to do the 1000 Hours Outside Challenge.

Final Thoughts: There’s No Way to Fail

The beauty of the 1000 Hours Outside challenge is that, as long as you’re making an effort, you can’t fail. The 1000-hour goal is simply a guideline to help motivate you, but any time spent outside is valuable.

I hope this post helps inspire you to take on the challenge! Whether you complete 100 hours or 1000 hours, just getting outside and spending time with your family is what matters most. Now that you know how to do the 1000 Hours Outside Challenge, I hope you’re ready to get started with confidence and make those outdoor memories!

See you out there!

Check out my in-depth How to Track Hours for the 1000 Hours Outside Challenge guide!: How To Do the 1000 Hours Outside Challenge

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