Friday Five: 5 Reasons Go To Summer Camp as a Grown Up

It’s Friday, so I’m linking up with Fairytales and Fitness for the Friday Five. If you saw my Coffee Date post last Friday, you’d see that I went to Empower Summer Camp last weekend. This camp was put on by Fit Approach who runs the “Sweat Pink” fitness ambassador program. I’m going to share the reasons you should take the opportunity to go to summer camp if you have a chance.

5 Reasons to Go to Summer Camp as a Grown Up

Thanks Cam Lee for this photo!

1. To meet online friends in real life and to make new friends. I’ve been a member of Sweat Pink for years. I was so excited to meet Jamie, Elyse and Nic in real life. Their energy is amazing and the effort they put into making this a great experience for everyone was epic. I also met Annmarie (a/k/a Fit Foodie Mama), Sandra (a/k/a Organic Runner Mom), Christine (a/k/a Run Out of the Box) and Rachel (a/k/a Running on Happy) after interacting with them online for years. I got to hang out with Marcia, Wendy and Natali, too. I met so many new friends, too!

2. To unplug and interact. Even though there were a ton of social media influencers and bloggers at camp. People were really present and attentive during all of the activities and sessions. Unlike so many events and meetings I go to, it seemed like there were few people multi-tasking or working on other things – including me.

3. To get out in nature. Right before camp, I went to check out St. Ives’ Nature Reset with National Geographic Adventure. Studies show that 15 minutes in nature help to seriously alleviate stress. We all need that. Other than fighting the mosquitoes, I found myself totally blissed out being out in the country.

4. To learn about myself and others. One of the unexpected benefits for me of this camp was the diversity among campers. There were women (and a few men) of all ages, races and socioeconomic classes. While most of the sessions were active, there were some where people shared their experiences. This opened up more topics of conversation throughout the time we were there. I felt like I really got to know people at more than a surface level and learned a few things about myself in the process.

Doing all the things!

5. To have time to do all the things. In regular life there are so many competing priorities for our time. Here, all there was to do was camp stuff. On Saturday, we ran, did two workouts, meditated, ate three delicious meals and smoothie bowls created by Annmarie and Now Foods, did crafts and had a bonfire. I may even have missed some things. It’s rare to have the opportunity to “do all the things” without the guilt of missing other responsibilities.

BONUS: We also got a huge swag bag and goodies from Now Foods, Takeya, AfterShokz, Goodr, Great Lakes Gelatin, Jade Leaf Matcha, Artisan Tropic, Suja Juice and more! So many great things to try. It was pretty epic!

Have you ever been to a fitness camp or adult retreat?

Have a great weekend!