It’s good to always have ideas for healthy dates. These type of dates are becoming more and more popular due to people wanting fit bodies to attract others. Classic date ideas tend to lean toward the indulgent: a movie, complete with a giant soda and a large bucket of popcorn (with extra butter), reservations at an extravagant French restaurant, or cocktails and fried foods at a bar. Now that is not Healthy.
Five star dinners and expensive bottles of wine can create romance but they could also lead to weight gain. So, if you prefer to be passionate and have body confidence, here are 6 great Healthy Dates that can still create romance.
1. turn Up the Heat
Rather than spending your evening (and entire paycheck) on an expensive dinner, take your date to a farmers’ market and pick up some locally grown, healthy products to cook together. Walking around the market will get your heart rate up, and eating organic food is great for your community and your body.
Grill up some fish, perhaps salmon, and lightly sauté the vegetables you bought from the market. Or, if salmon isn’t your thing, try grilling a smaller fish, such as cod, which has low mercury content, tons of protein, and large amounts of cholesterol-reducing omega-3 fatty acids, as well as vitamin D (for healthy bones!). Not to mention tastes delicious! Now that’s on the list of healthy dates.
2. Just Dance
While you could stay inside watching “Dancing with the Stars”, why not try some dancing of your own? Taking a dance class with your date is a romantic way to spend your time together, as well as a fantastic way to get exercise. If taking a class isn’t your style, how about a night at the club? Dancing for just one hour can burn up to 500 calories, improve strength, and tone muscle — so get out on the dance floor and show off your moves! Put that on your list of healthy dates to have,
3. Go Take a Hike
Spending your day in nature is one of the ideas for healthy dates. Be sure you bring lots of water to stay hydrated and take snacks to keep your energy and spirits up. Opt for trail mix with fruits and nuts over high-calorie, sugar-packed energy bars. If you’re not up for hiking, a leisurely stroll in the woods or walk around the neighborhood also burns calories, gets you out of the house, and can be very romantic.
4. Be Flexible
How about taking a yoga class together? There are many preconceptions about yoga that simply aren’t true. One of them is that yoga is not a couple’s activity. Like dancing, yoga can be a great way to work up a sweat with your partner. Classes range from Ananda yoga — a calm style that focuses on controlled breathing, slow movements, and body alignment — to the physically demanding and strength-building Ashtanga and Bikram yoga styles.
5. Go Upstream
Why not try kayaking together? This teamwork-paddled date packs all the scenery and tranquility (not to mention upper-body burn) into one picture-perfect afternoon. While both people have to paddle at the same time (no slackers allowed!), whoever is in front has to trust the person in the back to steer properly. So when they say, “No honey, I’m not going to steer you into that big rock,” you just have to go with it. It turns out that all that communicating will not only improve your skills but your attitude as well. One study of Oxford University rowers found that team members who worked out together doubled their endorphin release compared to those who exercised solo.
6. Take a Walk on the Wild Side.
Healthy Dates could include taking a trapeze lesson, bungee jumping, skydiving or white-water rafting. They can provide a kind of super-adventurous (and slightly dangerous) good time while creating an instant bond. Anytime the two of you do something unusual that is scary or thrilling, it creates a different kind of chemistry. Heart-pumping, bloodcurdling fear factor dates provide a feel-good high, help you connect with your date and create instant chemistry all at once due to the endorphin rush.
As if that weren’t enough reason to veer off the beaten path, consider this — research shows that simply doing new things together as a couple ignites the same circuit as does falling in love. Healthy dates will flood the brain’s reward system with dopamine and norepinephrine, mixing up date night activities can help those butterflies hang around a bit longer. If you or someone you know is single and looking for love in Austin, please contact us. Love is always in the air, sometimes you just need a little direction!
