Top 10 Health Benefits of Visiting Theme Parks

Theme parks are one of the best vacation attractions. With a motley combination providing a variety of foods, drinks, shows and attractions, thrilling and casual family rides, theme parks have something to offer for everyone. Whether you’re going in the winter to experience warm drinks and snow-covered cottages or if you’re going at peak season time in the summer for water rides and heart-stopping drops on roller coasters, theme parks provide adventure, fun, and memories for friends and family to enjoy. Here are the Top 10 from Health Fitness Revolution and author of the book ReSYNC Your Life Samir Becic:

• Walk miles without even realizing it – Contrary to being called a park (which often evokes small quaint images of soft grass and park benches), theme parks can cover vast areas up to 100 sq. miles! Because they can be so large, you need to do a lot of walking while at a theme park. A typical visit often involves a lot of backtracking and zig-zagging to get from one ride or show to another, and depending on the size of the theme park, you should expect to walk an average of 5 to 10 miles. This will help you burn around 500 to 1000 calories.

• Burn calories while riding the crazy rides – Though the most you’re doing on a roller coaster is sitting and screaming your lungs, you actually do burn calories while on the rides. Some may disagree, but riding roller coasters is an enjoyable way to burn off fat! A team of scientists, artists, engineers, and designers known as the Thrill Laboratory conducted a study and determined that certain attractions in Thorpe Park in the UK helped riders burn between around 40 and 70 calories.

• Relieves stress – According to clinical psychologist Judy Kurianski, high-tempo rides such as Expedition Everest at Walt Disney World in Florida expose us to “good fear”. Despite the plummeting drops, heart-stopping twists and nauseatingly sharp turns these thrill rides contain, our brains perceive them to be “safe” and “predictable” – so riding them becomes therapeutic, especially as we scream out our anxieties!

• Improves mood – The intense adrenaline rush after a riding crazy roller coaster will leave you feeling excited and happy. The higher the altitude, the more endorphins are released on the descent. The increased endorphin release increases alertness and makes you more energized. While 20 stories up in the air all your other worries seem so small. Being in a theme park is a great way to escape your day to day worries.

• Provides a rush of adrenaline – That “good fear” while riding the crazy rides, has other benefits, too. While embarking on these rides, our bodies to release adrenaline and endorphins, which gives us the same kind of natural high that we get from strenuous physical exercise and nourishes our feel-good emotions. These can also help our relationships because it causes couples to seek each other out for protection and comfort.

• Tones the muscles – As you’re thrown around its corners and forced down hundred-foot drops, in a split second you decide whether or not to clutch the handrail in front of you or throw your arms up into the air. At this point, your muscles tighten, especially your core as you anticipate the turns and drops of the ride, working out some of the muscles you would typically be working out at the gym.

• Casual workout –  When your body releases adrenaline and endorphins, your body is telling you “again, again!” and encourages you to live life at its fullest as you embrace the thrill. These chemicals will naturally help tone your muscles and get you to break a sweat even while you’re navigating through the theme park. The Thrill Laboratory’s Dr. Paul Tennent said, “If anyone goes to a theme park for a day, it will do the same amount of good as going to a gym and working out intensively for an hour and a half.”

• Overcome your fears – If you dislike thrill rides or large crowds, theme parks may not seem like the most pleasurable activity to partake in. But these type of stresses and fears can harm the immune system. Conquering fears, however, is another benefit of visiting amusement parks. Plunging headlong into a crowd eagerly awaiting for their turn on a roller coaster can foster confidence and improve self-esteem, encouraging one to conquer their fears and enjoy life unhindered.

• Fosters bonding time with family and friends – What better way to have fun at an adventure park than to enjoy it with friends and family? Spending time at an adventure is a great way to spend time with your loved ones while ensuring everyone is having a fun time. People go to theme parks for fun, you go to create memories with your families, to share time with your families; to get away from the humdrum or everyday life, you go to be entertained.

• Great way to socialize – If going with a group of friends or acquaintances, going to a theme park can provide you with the opportunity to get to know people. Theme parks are casual, fun environments, making it easier to strike up a conversation with someone you may be interested in getting to know better. Even if you’re going with people are familiar with, like family and close friends, both adults and kids can interact, teaching kids learn how to interact with adults and vice versa.

If you enjoy adrenaline rushes, you might also enjoy:

• Top 10 Health Benefits of Jet Skiing
• Top 10 Health Benefits of Paragliding
• Top 10 Health Benefits of Polo
• Top 10 Health Benefits Flyboarding
• Top 10 Health Benefits of Flying an Airplane
• Top 10 Health Benefits of Rock Climbing

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