For most people who love the outdoors, the dream is to find a romantic partner that you can share your passion and adventures with. However, sometimes love doesn’t work this way. So if you find yourself falling for someone that would rather stay inside than adventure outside, you may wonder what you can do to help your loved one appreciate the lifestyle that you follow.
To help you in finding some middle ground and encouraging your loved one to get outside with you, here are three ways to share your love of the outdoors with your significant other.
Do A Dry Run First
According to Jennifer Davis-Flynn, a contributor to REI.com, in order to help your loved one gain some confidence in having outdoor experiences, you may want to give them some exposure to this on a much smaller scale first.
To do this, think about how you can show your loved one what you’d be doing on your proposed outdoor adventure without actually getting outside and doing the actual trip. Depending on what it is you want to do outside, you might try going on shorter walks outdoors first, helping them become stronger physically so they’re less intimidated by things like rock climbing, or going to a beginner’s class for things like skiing prior to heading to the mountain.
Don’t Get Anyone In Over Their Head
When your partner agrees to try some form of outdoor adventure, the best thing you can do is to make sure that the experience you have together is a positive one.
To increase the chances of this happening, Stephen Krcmar, a contributor to Men’s Journal, recommends that you choose something that you’ll both be comfortable with. As the person leading this adventure, you’ll want to make sure that you’re never in over your head so that you can be confident in helping your partner when they need it. And if your partner doesn’t have everything they need to feel confident, like the right clothes or gear for outdoor adventure, get them outfitted properly so they don’t feel underprepared.
Learn To Explore While Offering Others Grace
Although you might have dreams of you and your partner spending days outside in an Instagram-like glow of adventuring together, at least at the beginning, this is going to be very far from reality. So to help your loved one learn to love the outdoors for themself, Blair Braverman, a contributor to OutsideOnline.com, advises that you extend a lot of grace toward yourself and your partner. By being understanding about their limitations and showing excitement when they try something new with you, you may find that they’re much more likely to head outside with you again on your next adventure.
If you have a significant other that doesn’t love being outdoors as much as you do, consider using the tips mentioned above to help build this passion together.
