Mentally Prepare for Family Hikes

The secret for happy family hiking? Your attitude! Learn how positive intentions can make for more fulfilling family adventures.

For me, the goal of hiking with a toddler is spending the whole day outdoors exploring, learning, and teaching. I love the idea of our family slowly ambling along pine straw covered paths dappled in sunlight while CZ crouches to examine each rock and stick, as JZ and I smile conspiratorially to each other. I think about taking poignant photographs to capture these fleeting moments as CZ develops so quickly from baby to child. However, more often than not, my daydreams are just, well daydreams. A few months ago, our family day trips frequently devolved into stressful and frustrating ventures that felt far from my idyllic daydreams of peaceful, lovely family time.

I think it is actually quite common in the days of everyone sharing their highlight reel on social media, for people to think that their lives don’t quite measure up. We can end up with dashed hopes and unfulfilled expectations. However, the secret to enjoyable family hiking is not where you go, what you pack, or how awesome your photos are. It is your mindset and approach to the outing that can change everything.

I remember one hike in particular that should have been relaxing and great opportunity to bond with my family. We were headed back to the Blue Mountains for the last hike of the summer. Unfortunately, I stressed about getting to the train, what CZ would entertain herself with onboard, worried we didn’t pack enough food, and increasingly annoyed at JZ’s frequent, extended photography stops.

Sure, I managed to be present when CZ hiked alongside me holding my hand, as we took 30 minutes to climb 5 steps. She kept turning around to jump off each stair she summited, and occasionally she would jump down until we were back where we started. And I couldn’t help but laugh when JZ wildly overreacted with spastic arms flaying, as a spider web touched his face. But those moments were just moments, peppered through an otherwise generally unpleasant trip. It was not until we successfully boarded the train home, hot dinner in hand, that I started to relax, which made me realized just how tense and negative I had been during the outing.

The interesting thing is that nothing went particularly “wrong” on this trip. I just went into the experience with some much doubt and negativity that I could not enjoy myself. Then, when I took time to be very introspective (which I now do every morning), I realized that I was the only one not having fun and the one only one who could change how I felt.

As we continued spending entire days as a family marching through the mountains or trekking along the coasts, I started implementing a few simple strategies for a positive behavior shift. I want to be remembered as the mom with a passion for enjoying the outdoors with her family. Not the one who continually nags people to hurry up, rolls her eyes before photos, and snaps when someone asks for another snack.

For me, this means creating and practicing an affirmation for a period of time leading up to the trip so that I have right focus and (hopefully) embody the mom I envision myself to be. I know some of you light up at the word affirmation, while others scoff, but if at first you balk, hear me out.

By now, most of us know that our mood influences our behavior, and we know we want to be patient and encouraging so our family-time is enjoyable for everyone. We spend hours preparing gear, clothing, food, and travel plans, so why not prepare ourselves for a positive mood? When structured the right way, affirmations will do just that. Here are a few examples of my goals, and how I translated them into affirmations.

Goal – to be passionate about fostering a love of the outdoors with my family
Affirmation – How will you be a passionate participant who fosters the love of the outdoors with your family?

Goal – to appreciate having time to slowly enjoy nature with my family
Affirmation – How will you act in gratitude with the gift of time to enjoy nature with your family?

Goal – embrace the moment
Affirmation – How will you focus on the fleeting joy in this moment?

For the affirmations to really work, I find that I need to say them (out loud) several times a day. I choose the mornings, because it is the only time that I can really count on being alone (although not so much right now as we adjust to the post-vacation time zone and CZ wakes up at 5:40am).

Another important piece of success is to forgive yourself. I found that the more I dwelled on my mistakes, the more apt I was to repeat them. Focusing on your affirmation when your actions fall a bit short will help you let it go.

My success with turning around our family hikes spurred a lot of research, and JZ’s success overcoming the stress at work led to the purchase of a domain. Now, after a few months of work, we have a new project, Positive Mornings, to share with you.

Positive Mornings is a free, live 45 day positive affirmation challenge, launching on June 20th. We ran a pilot group, with great feedback, and look forward to opening it up to more participants for this challenge. If you are interested in joining the challenge, you can sign up at www.positivemornings.com, and if you know anyone who might benefit, please share the link.