[00:00.00]From VOA Learning English, this is the Health & Lifestyle report.
[00:06.69]In Edmonton, Alberta, the sun had yet to come up.
[00:13.14]The temperature was more than 20 degrees below zero.
[00:18.36]In the dark and cold, Tanis Smith was ready to run up and down hundreds of stairs among the trees in the Saskatchewan River Valley.
[00:32.09]And Smith was not alone.
[00:35.15]Ten people joined her for the activity.
[00:39.08]All were wearing several layers of clothing to keep warm.
[00:43.83]"You're pretty much just putting everything you own on," said Smith, an accountant.
[00:50.96]"If you look at the pictures, you don't know who you are unless you remember what you were wearing."
[00:59.53]Since that winter back in 2013, Smith has rarely missed a workout with a group called November Project.
[01:09.78]November Project is a network of free outdoor group exercise classes that started in Boston, Massachusetts.
[01:21.06]No matter the weather, members get out of bed before sunrise at least once a week and go outdoors for group exercise.
[01:33.32]November Project is part exercise, part fun, and part community.
[01:40.63]It is a model for exercising outdoors, especially in the winter.
[01:46.82]It started in 2011, when two friends agreed to exercise every morning for the month of November.
[01:56.49]They were looking for accountability and motivation to help them stick to an exercise routine.
[02:06.21]By the end of that first month, they had invited others to join them.
[02:12.85]Soon, their meetings were bringing in almost forty people. And it became a year-round project.
[02:21.98]"A party is better when there's more people around. We would talk to anybody who would listen," said Bojan Mandaric.
[02:32.02]He created the project with friend, Brogan Graham.
[02:36.65]Then, as people moved to other cities, they took the idea with them.
[02:42.89]So, the November Project grew.
[02:46.24]Now, there are 52 groups in eight countries, including 44 in the United States and Canada.
[02:56.47]People of all ages and fitness levels join the workouts.
[03:02.61]Some groups begin with something called "The Bounce."
[03:07.14]They chant and jump at the same time to bring the group together.
[03:13.10]Those who feel inhibited, do not have to do this.
[03:18.29]Most classes include running and body weight exercises like squats.
[03:27.18]The project also uses the surroundings of the location.
[03:32.93]So, for example, some places include running up steps in an outdoor sports stadium.
[03:42.69]Currently in D.C., members meet on Wednesdays to run up the steps of the Lincoln Memorial.
[03:51.36]To keep the workouts fun, they also might include fun games and activities from childhood.
[04:00.26]In Edmonton, they play snow games in winter and water games in summer.
[04:08.45]The games help to lower inhibitions.
[04:12.35]This helps people make connections, said Jason Shaw. He is co-leader of the Indianapolis, Indiana group.
[04:23.77]"Nobody (is) cool at November Project," he said.
[04:28.35]Shaw said groups recognize members' milestones.
[04:33.75]People can earn prizes for reaching different goals.
[04:38.73]To find out if a November Project group is near you, go to their website at November-Project.com.
[04:51.95]Building community and making friends is another big part of the project.
[04:59.41]So, each group is active on social media.
[05:03.49]If you do not have a November Project nearby, you can find another type of outdoor exercise group.
[05:13.00]Or start your own.
[05:15.41]The November Project organizers offer a few suggestions on how to work out during colder months.
[05:24.75]Find workout friends.
[05:27.78]At the center of the project, is accountability.
[05:31.88]Members promise to show up.
[05:35.43]There is a sense of letting down your teammates if you do not show up, said Mandaric, who moved to Boston from Serbia to row crew for Northeastern University.
[05:49.05](Rowing crew is a type of boat racing.)
[05:53.31]Invest in some cold-weather clothing
[05:58.41]There is no such thing as bad weather, just bad clothing, said Shaw, the leader from Indianapolis.
[06:07.21]He suggests wearing clothing next to your skin that removes sweat.
[06:14.26]This will help keep you warm and dry.
[06:18.14]Avoid cotton, he warned.
[06:21.27]It keeps sweat in contact with your body and will make you colder.
[06:27.73]Also, add a top layer that protects against bad weather.
[06:33.91]On its webpage, the November Project leaders for Washington, DC say workouts are not cancelled for weather.
[06:44.15]Promise yourself to exercise on the same days and times for a month.
[06:51.83]Create a routine.
[06:54.60]This will make it easier to stick to an exercise routine, says Mandaric.
[07:00.96]And make sure to have fun.
[07:04.32]Exercise does not have to be hard or serious.
[07:09.46]Smith, the member from Edmonton, Alberta, says she enjoys the social part of the November Project the most.
[07:19.06]She calls it "a chosen family."
[07:22.06]They came together because they had fun exercising. She said.
[07:29.25]"You can have fun and get fit."
[07:32.13]And that's the Health & Lifestyle report. I'm Anna Matteo.
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Words in This Story
layer -n. one thickness or fold over or under another
call-and-response -n. statement quickly followed by an answering statement
chant -n. a rhythmic, one-tone statement or song said out loud
squat -n. an exercise in which a standing person lowers to a position in which the torso is erect and the knees are deeply bent and then rises to an upright position
burpee -n. conditioning exercise in which a person squats, places the palms of the hands on the floor in front of the feet, jumps back into a push-up position, in some cases completes one push-up, returns to the squat position, and then jumps up into the air while extending the arms overhead
inhibition -n. a restraint or check upon the free or spontaneous instincts or impulses of an individual guided or directed by the social and cultural forces of the environment
milestone -n. a significant point in development
crew -n. the sport of rowing a boat, causing it to move through water using poles with flat ends called oars
sweat -n. the fluid excreted from the sweat glands of the skin
routine -n. a standard or regular way of doing something
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