Sensory pleasures and displeasures of the outdoors: learning how to

What is it about?

Globally, there are calls to increase physical activity levels in sedentary populations, including via physical activity programmes, often targeted at those deemed at risk of ‘sedentariness’. Despite the salience of sensory pleasures and displeasures in engagement with (and abandonment of) these programmes, the sensory, embodied experiences of participation remain under-researched. Here, we draw on findings from a two-year ethnographic study of a national programme in Wales, which used the aesthetic attractions of ‘natural’ outdoor environments to encourage and sustain physical activity. Employing insights from phenomenological sociology, we explore the programme participants’ (n=146) lived experiences, analysed via a phenomenological lens, cohering around a panoply of sensory pleasures and displeasures, and somatic learning that is shaped and reshaped by weather encounters.

Featured Image

Photo by Simon English on Unsplash

Photo by Simon English on Unsplash

Why is it important?

Despite the importance of how people experience outdoor exercise programmes with regard to adherence and what motivates people to continue, the role of the senses, pleasures and discomforts remain under-researched. Here, we draw on findings from a two-year ethnographic study of a national programme in Wales to remedy this gap in the research literature.