After one last ungodly roar of sub-zero temperatures, it seems as though Old Man Winter may soon be off to bed. Believe you me, there is not a single tear of sorrow being shed from my eyes for his departure. The warm(er) weather will be back very shortly, and besides being able to do just about anything outdoors without the fear of freezing to death, it's also a good time to start road work again. No, not construction -- well, come to think of it, construction actually is appropriate a term to use, because you can now resume construction on your bodies. Only now, it is safe to leave the confines of the gym and start walking, jogging and/or running (or hiking, biking, etc.) outside.

There is more than enough research circulating that stresses the important role that exercise plays in total body health, so to point to any would simply be redundant. That being said, our health should be among the most important parts of our lives, so getting your 'exercise on' should be just as much a part of your day as brushing your teeth. Okay, that's out of the way -- now back to the whole exercising outside bit.

In the gym, the treadmills, ellipticals, recumbent bikes and such all have those handy readout screens. They tell us how much time has elapsed, how many calories have been burned (roughly, anyway), our heart rate, the winning lottery numbers, the meaning of life -- you name it, they tell you. But, when you're outside, you don't really have the information handy (other than time, which can be kept on a wristwatch). Another option is the Nike/iPod combination that pumps your favorite tunes through your earbuds while keeping tabs on how many steps you've taken and how much further you have to go to complete your programmed goal. Again, this is an option, but it of course involves shelling out the dough to buy the special sneakers (and iPod, because it does not support any other .mp3 players).

Where does that leave us? In a good place, actually. If you want to keep tabs on your outdoor workout with the same precision that you did while using gym equipment, you can always create a timed mega-mix of songs for you CD or .mp3 player. Want to perform some interval training (where the intensity of your workout fluctuates during various intervals)? Would you like to create a steady climb of intensity? How about simply knowing how long you've been running/jogging/walking for? Again, the easiest solution is the mega-mix.

I was initially going to make a few mix lists -- each totaling out at around 30 or so minutes. One would incorporate fast songs being followed by slow songs (for interval training), while others would be a group of songs with tempos that became increasingly faster each song. But, what ultimately stopped me from making the list was the fact that I haven't a clue what type of music you may enjoy. Some people like to listen to techno while they exercise, while others still are more inclined to put together a score of country hits. Whatever gets you motivated, that's what you should choose.

So, with the warmer weather here, try bringing your workouts outside. And, with your pre-determined 30 minute mega-mix pumping you through your exercise program, you'll soon remember how much you missed the great outdoors.