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Adventure activities are an excellent way to escape boredom and bond with others while providing inspiration – but they should also be treated as potentially risky endeavors.
These sports involve taking calculated risks in uncontrolled environments and are becoming more and more popular, perhaps signaling our desire for adventure and risk-taking experiences.
They are a great way to get out of a rut
When feeling stuck in a rut, one of the best ways out is through embarking on an adventure. This could range from trying a new restaurant or sky diving all the way through to traveling abroad! Remember that adventures come in all forms; local or abroad they provide opportunities for discovery of different environments and cultures!
One of the most thrilling adventure activities is bungee jumping. Although exhilarating and terrifying at once, if you follow all safety instructions correctly this activity should remain completely safe. Scuba diving offers another unique and unforgettable adventure experience which may leave you feeling like Indiana Jones!
Fun adventure ideas include cycling to the beach and sleeping under the stars, exploring a new park on foot or going hiking with your children – it’s simple to break out of a routine by having the courage to experience some thrills!
They are a great way to bond with friends
Are you looking to strengthen relationships with friends through adventure sports? They offer both fun and challenge while helping build strength and confidence; in particular, skateboarding can burn up to 500 calories an hour while simultaneously improving coordination skills and balance.
Participants identified several psychological advantages to adventure recreation, including extraordinary experiences, personal growth, immersion and transformation, and social connection and belongingness to nature. This research contributes to an ever-expanding body of research demonstrating the contribution of adventure experiences to PWB beyond physical health benefits alone. Future work should investigate this broader spectrum of adventure recreational benefits such as social connection and belongingness in nature as well as investigating their effects in novel contexts such as prolonged government restrictions. To inform research design and analysis the authors drew upon descriptive phenomenology and appreciative inquiry theoretical frameworks as sources of insight to inform both research design and analysis respectively.
They are a great way to learn new things
Adventure activities provide an amazing way to learn to take risks and push oneself physically and mentally while building independence, confidence, and an “I can do it!” mentality. Furthermore, taking part can also serve as an excellent opportunity to bond with friends or family members!
Participants consisted of fifteen men, four women and one non-binary person who took part in various adventure recreation activities such as ski-mountaineering, free diving, rock-climbing, whitewater kayaking, back country skiing, sky diving SCUBA diving and BASE jumping. Semi-structured interviews conducted via Zoom typically lasted an average of 69.3 minutes with reflexive thematic analysis used to categorise their descriptions of adventure recreation experiences.
There have been five metathemes and 16 subthemes identified that capture the key subjective well-being (SWB) influences of adventure recreation participation as well as its expected benefits, such as extraordinary experiences, physical/mental balance, personal development, immersion/transformation/community connection etc. These themes include Extraordinary Experiences, Physical/mental Balance, Personal Development Immersion / Transformation/Community.
They are a great way to experience the world
Adventure activities provide children with an outlet to foster their natural curiosity and keep the spirit of exploration alive. Adventure activities can be found both outside in nature, as well as indoor facilities like skate parks or rock climbing gyms; not only are these activities exciting and fulfilling but they may also have health advantages that include improving balance and coordination.
Participants reported how adventure recreation helped them regulate their emotions during the COVID-19 pandemic, making it an invaluable skill. Further research should explore whether these psychological benefits translate to non-adventure contexts, along with exploring more adventure activities and participants.
Five intertwined metathemes emerged from this qualitative analysis: Extraordinary Experiences, Physical and Mental Balance, Personal Development, Immersion and Transformation and Community. These themes represent subjective well-being – an area of importance in adventure research. Additional empirical work must be conducted to ground these concepts within adventure literature.
