Outdoor Workouts to Add Fun and Variety to Your Routine

June 2022

By Bridget Reipl, Founder of NJ Yoga Collective

 

As much as we all love local fitness studios, it can feel just a little bit tougher to walk through the doors when the sunshine, breeze, and the Jersey Shore’s salty sea start begging us to ditch the indoor workout for the outdoors. Luckily, lots of local wellness professionals are more than willing to help you trust your instincts and take the sweat time OUTSIDE! Our parks, beaches, docks, and decks are great alternative locales for lifting, toning, stretching, meditating, strengthening, hiking, biking, or running.

 

Check out some fun outdoor options this summer:

Hammer Sports & Performance x Zephyr Performance Training: Count Basie Track Workout 

When: Saturdays starting June 4th at 7:30 AM

Where: Count Basie Track & Fields rain at Zephyr Performance Training  

Join Hammer Sports for a 1-hour workout consisting of different cardio exercises using the track, bleachers, football field, and additional equipment the trainer brings. You do not have to be an experienced runner!

 

Beach Workouts with Hammer Sports & Performance at Promenade Beach Club 

When: Sundays in June and July (check their website for details) at 8 AM 

Where: Promenade Beach Club Long Branch, Free Parking available

Meet up with the Hammer team for a 1-hour workout consisting of different cardio & strength exercises, using equipment brought by the trainer! Sessions will also include some boxing and kickboxing workouts.  If you have boxing gloves, please bring them! No experience is necessary.

 

Solo Barre at the Beach & in the Backyard!

When: Tuesdays + Thursdays at 6:30 AM and Monday + Wednesday at 9:15 AM in the backyard in Fair Haven, NJ

Tuesdays + Thursdays at 9 AM in Sea Bright, NJ at Surfrider Beach Club

Fridays at 7:30 AM in Lavalette, NJ (New York Avenue)

Step into Solo Barre’s outdoor studios for a CORE-focused 60 min barre+meditation session. This class is designed to use your body weight to create long, lean muscle. 

Solo Barre’s founder, Nicole, incorporates guided breathwork throughout the session recover, connect mind + body, and build core muscle. Nicole closes out each 45-minute barre session with a 15-minute meditation focused on breathing. So all you need is some water, a pair of sunnies, and some of your favorite people to share this one-of-a-kind nature built in a sweat sesh.

Follow @solo.barre on IG for more info!

 

Mike’s Body Shop: Brings the Ultimate HIIT workout to you.

Where: Your house (or backyard, driveway, etc.)

When: As scheduled

Join Mike Shaw for 1-hour high intensity workouts curated to meet your specific needs and ability level. Sessions are for 1-5 participants. Mike brings the equipment and the intensity…so bring your A-Game. Beginners – Elite Athletes welcome.

Email: mikeshaw.1205fitness@gmail.com for scheduling and more info.

 

Monmouth Beach Yoga & Wellness Beach Yoga Program for 2022

When: From Memorial Day to Labor Day, you can join Monmouth Beach for practices on Mondays, Wednesdays, Thursdays, Fridays, Saturdays, and Sundays (weather permitting). 

Where: At the corner of Cottage Road & Ocean Avenue in Monmouth Beach (to the left of Big Monmouth Beach Club).

Monmouth Beach Yoga & Wellness (MBYW) offers wonderful beach yoga classes all summer long, including a must-try Friday Foundational Training practice at 8:30 AM with Lisa. That class began back in April and is limited to 12 students, so sign up in advance! 

For the rest of the week, consider joining MBYW’s skilled, compassionate, dedicated teachers at 7:30 AM on Saturdays and Sundays, 8:30 AM on Mondays and Wednesdays, and Thursdays at 5:30 PM. The Thursday evening class is a deep and delicious Yin practice, which will happen in-studio if it’s a rainy evening. 

MBYW’s beach classes are gentle in nature, incorporating stretching, balancing, and meditation. 

You can access information about all of Monmouth Beach’s offerings through their website. If you have any issues, please text or call 973-452-2828. You may use your package or buy a drop-in. You will need to bring a blanket or a towel, not a yoga mat.

 

Salted Soul Yoga & Wellness 

When: Mondays 7:30 PM Meditation Circle; Wednesdays 4:30 PM Young Warrior Yoga & Meditation- free for teens; Thursdays 7 PM, Sunset Beach Yoga followed by community jam circle with live music by the locals; Saturdays 8 AM Sunrise Beach Yoga 

Where: Cliff Avenue beach entrance in Bradley Beach, NJ 

Everyone is welcome to join Salted Soul’s yoga, meditation, full moon offerings, sound bath & community jam circles, and Young Warrior Teen program. Mel Gustray will lead you through accessible yoga and meditation to help you discover new space in your mind and body. Mel’s school teaching and coaching backgrounds bring a gentle approach to a soulful class. These classes are donation-based, benefiting community programs such as Big Brother’s Big Sister of Monmouth County, Bradley Beach Recreation Department, and Neptune Twp. Athletics, Clean Oceans Action & The Plastic Wave Project. No sign-up is required. Come as you are. 

Follow @saltedsoulyoga on Instagram or email satledsoulyoga@gmail.com to get on the mailing list. 

 

And Flow Yoga x Promenade Beach Club

When: Tuesdays, Thursdays & Sundays at 8:30 AM

Where: Promenade Beach Club, Long Branch, NJ

Join And Flow on the rooftop deck at the Promenade Beach Club for a Baptiste-inspired vinyasa practice with beautiful ocean views. This class allows students to connect with the breath and the body through standing sequences, bends, twists, and inversions.

 

Jennifer Borenius SoulShine Studios: Creating a Wave of Wellness Yoga 

Where: Wave Resort + Bungalow Hotel with SoulShine Studios, High Crest Terrace

When: Thursdays at 8:30 AM

With this oceanfront rooftop location, you will spend sixty minutes working and completely connecting, while entirely radiating the best version of yourself.  A class designed for all levels, we apply the SoulShine principle of foundational work, beginning with breath, then focusing on foundation and form. Next, we increase the range of motion and finally add intensity, to challenge what is possible within YOU! 

Booking link: https://www.waveresort.com/experiences#/

 

The Fort Athletic Club’s Beach Bootcamps and Yoga Flows by the Sea

When: Saturdays and Sundays at 8 AM (Saturday boot camp), 9 AM (Saturday yoga), and 8:30 AM (Sunday yoga). 

Where: Chapel Beach Club in Sea Bright, NJ

Join The Fort Athletic Club’s amazing trainers & renowned local yoga teacher, Vanessa Van Noy, for unique workouts by the sea all summer long! You’ll have the chance to experience a military-inspired boot camp on Saturday mornings at 8 AM, a yoga flow with the Fort’s Hot Zone team of teachers on Saturdays at 9 AM, and Vanessa’s signature sequencing on Sundays at 8:30 AM. 

Find the Fort on Mindbody to sign up for classes!

 

Lilly Thygeson: Vinyasa Wave Flow 

Where: Wave Resort + Bungalow Hotels with SoulShine Studios, High Crest Terrace 

When: Saturdays at 8:30 AM

In this session, we approach yoga, moving from one pose directly into the next in a deliberately and intentionally designed sequence to maximize your potential.  Founded in principles that encourage flow, Lilly will guide you through an awakening of body, mind, and spirit for a sixty-minute rooftop oceanfront experience.

Booking link: https://www.waveresort.com/experiences#/

 

Stress Free Body Summer Flow

When: Saturday and Sunday at 8 AM; Mondays at 7:15 PM; Tuesday nights at 6:30 PM; Thursdays at 9:30 AM

Where: 52 West Front Street Keyport, NJ 07735

Join Cat and her team for health & wellness in both body and mind through mindful movement. 

 

Fun Ideas To Mix It Up:

Hartshorne Woods Park, the Henry Hudson Trail, and Huber Woods Park are right outside your door.  Each offers a variety of trails and challenges.  Trails are open to hikers and mountain bikers.  

Henry Hudson Trail info:  https://www.monmouthcountyparks.com/page.aspx?Id=2525

Hartshorne Woods info: https://www.monmouthcountyparks.com/

Huber Woods info: https://www.monmouthcountyparks.com/page.aspx?Id=2529

 

  • If you park at either the Locust street lot of Huber or the Clay Pit lot at Hartshorne, you can combine parts of each park for one longer hike or bike.

  • There are municipal stairs beside the Highlands to Atlantic Highlands portion of the Henry Hudson Trail.  Running stairs is a great workout!  You can count how many ascents you do in a given period as one way of marking progress.  Stairs are great cardio, and this set offers a beautiful skyline view of Manhattan. To access the stairs from Bayside Drive, you can use a 2 car parking spot at 26 Bayside Drive.  If you are walking the trail, the stairs are about halfway between Popomora Point and the boatyard in Atlantic Highlands.
  • One way to get the kids and family (and maybe even you!) motivated to hike, bike, or walk is to set a destination along the way for a fun stop.  The Henry Hudson trail winds right through downtown Atlantic Highlands and heads west towards Keyport, so it’s easy to incorporate a stop for a meal or snack at a local restaurant.  Ideas include McDonagh’s Pub in Keyport, Jersey Shore Coffee Roasters in Leonardo, or Nicholas Creamery in Atlantic Highlands.
  • Don’t forget that we still have some BIG hills even in our sea level area, and walking/running/hiking hills is excellent training!  You can find more significant hills along the Battery Loop at Hartshorne.  The hill that leads down to the river and a dock has beautiful views and is the steepest in the park.

 There are many parks to explore in Monmouth County, and excellent descriptions and lists of activities are right on the website [monmouthcountyparks.org]

And don’t forget Sandy Hook, our “local” National Recreation Area!  The bike path is easy to navigate and safe for bikers of all ages.  Stop to watch the kite surfers on the bay side or sign up for one of the many free park ranger programs and other activities.  See the Gateway National Recreation Area website for more information on the park and a calendar of events.

If you want to go further afield, New Jersey has many trails to explore.  Good resources include NJhiking.com and All Trails.  Some good areas to explore include Bear Mountain,  Minnewaska in the New Paltz area, and the New Jersey section of the Appalachian Trail.

 


 

Bridget grew up in North Jersey, made a pit stop in Baltimore for college, headed back home for law school, and in 2009 found the place she will always call home: the Jersey Shore. As a yoga teacher with thousands of hours of experience, a community leader, a former lawyer, and a twin mom, Bridget is a true believer in the beauty of balance, on the mat and off. She reflects on what it means to practice yoga everywhere (studio, food store, rolling car line – anywhere!) To build vibrant, creative, and inspired classes, focusing on meeting each student precisely as they are, helping them discover their power, peace, and presence. A lover of movement, music that makes you feel all the things, and big poses that let you take even bigger breaths, Bridget will leave you feeling grateful for every moment on the mat. 

 

Photo credit:  PaytonVanGorp

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