5 Easy Ways to Get More Hours for 1000 Hours Outside

Overwhelmed thinking about how to get hours for the 1000 Hours Outside challenge? Coming up with ideas beyond a walk or going to a playground can feel challenging. Whether you’re new to the challenge or just trying to beat last year’s hours, you’re in the right place. Here are 5 easy ways to get more hours for 1000 Hours Outside!

More Hours for 1000 Hours Outside: 5 Easy Ways to Get More Outside Time

1. Eat Meals Outside

I’m starting this list off with my #1 TIP: eat meals outside. Think about how often we eat in a day. Breakfast, lunch, and dinner, with snacks sprinkled throughout. What if just one meal a day was outside on a patio, an apartment balcony, or around a campfire in the yard? Moving as many meals and snack times as you can when the weather allows will help you rack up hours quickly!

Check out my post How to Do the 1000 Hours Outside Challenge: How We Did It in 11 Months! Read more about how we hit our goal early, even without camping. My biggest hack to getting easy outdoor time was eating 90% of our meals outside from May-August in our climate. If we went out to eat, we chose a restaurant with outdoor seating whenever we could.

2. Front Load Monthly Hours

Get outside as much as possible early in the month. Don’t trick yourself into thinking you’ll make up for hours later. If the weather is extreme, it’s okay to relax for a few days. But be honest with yourself about what you can handle. To get more hours for the 1000 Hours Outside challenge, you have to push yourself outside your comfort zone. Get right back on track to hit your monthly hours goals as soon as possible.

You also need a plan and a 1000 Hours Outside monthly breakdown of average time outside to shoot for. You can get the 1000 Hours Outside monthly breakdown I created for our family here. Check out my post about How to Track Hours for the 1000 Hours Outside Challenge if you need some help breaking down how to track hours or what hours count for the 1000 Hours Outside challenge.

Pin this 1000 Hours Outside monthly breakdown for later!

3. Plan All-Day Outside Adventures

Choose a few days a month to plan to spend the entire day outside. Or at least, as much time as is realistic. This is especially valuable for families with full-time working parents or children in traditional public or private school. For many families, these days are best planned on the weekends.

Choose at the beginning of the month which days will be outside adventure days. Write in on your calendar to block off that day. Devote the day to family time and getting outside hours for the 1000 Hours Outside Challenge.

Outdoor Adventure Days Ideas

• Visit a local fair, festival, or farmer’s market
• Take a trip to a metro park or state park
• Pick in-season fruit or vegetables at a farm or orchard
• Take a family bike ride or do a favorite activity together like hiking, skiing, or fishing
• Volunteer at your community garden or community clean-up day
• Spend the day at the lake or river, or go creeking
• Go to a zoo, arboretum, or botanical garden near you

And remember, pack a meal or snacks so you can eat outside!

4. Dress for the Weather

Having the proper clothing can extend outdoor time by hours and hours potentially! This is the biggest mistake I see families make: not having the proper clothes.

Check the weather each day before going outside. Answer questions like: What’s high and low temperature today? Is it going to rain or snow? What’s the heat index and the UV index? And then dress according to the weather, NOT with whatever your child pulled out of their closet. I love a princess dress or superhero costume as much as the next mom, but sometimes we need to add a hat and rain boots.

If it’s cold, make sure children are dressed in layers with warm hats, waterproof boots, and insulated, waterproof mittens. Waterproof is extremely important because cold and wet hands and feet are what drive kids indoors most often. If it’s hot, make sure children are dressed in lightweight materials and have hats for the sun, if needed. In all weather, take a water bottle along to keep hydrated.

Check out my “What Gear Do You Need to Get Outside?” section of this post for more.

5. Spend Time with Outdoor Families

Nothing extends outdoor time like friends! This challenge requires A LOT of time outside, including outdoor social events as much as possible. It’s also an opportunity to connect with other families over common interests, like being outdoors.

Invite your friends over for dinner on the grill or a campfire and s’mores. Get together for a hike or a trip to the lake. Order pizzas and get together at a local park. Move playdates and birthday parties outside. I’ve found my kids could stay outside forever if there were friends to play with. Kidding! But only sort of.

Go Get More Hours for the 1000 Hours Outside Challenge

I hope these 5 easy ideas to get more outside time inspired you! Sometimes it really comes down to the basics. In reaching a big goal, our daily choices matter. Take your favorite tip and go get more hours for the 1000 Hours Outside Challenge! Share in a comment what ways YOUR family gets more hours outside and any tips I may have left out.

See you out there!

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