Think outside the gym – ways to cure cabin fever in NE Ohio.

The holidays are over. It’s cold and gray outside. Your kids have tons of energy and no where to expend it. You really don’t want to be a couch potato all winter, right? So, if heading to the gym to keep yourself active is not your idea of fun, here are a bunch of other ways to stay active in NE Ohio during the cold months.
Cross country skiing  and snow shoeing– the Cleveland MetroParks rents cross country skiis and snowshoes at its Big Met golf course near the

airport  – you can try out the sport inexpensively to see if you like it before you buy all the equipment yourself. And snoe shoes are free to use at the West Woods Nature Center in Russell through the Geauga Park District. And Holden Arboretum will teach you snow shoeing as well, every Sunday in January and every Saturday in February (included in cost of admission).
Sledding Hills – because the foothills of the Allegheny Mountains make up much of the east side of NE Ohio, we have great sledding hills. Here are some to start with: hills in the  Cleveland MetroParks reservations,  spots listed all over Cleveland and Akron in NE Ohio Family Fun’s website.

Skyzone – indoor trampoline parks in Highland Heights, Boston Heights & Westlake – experience the weightlessness of bouncing on trampolines or even flipping and landing in a pit filled with 10,000 foam cubes.  Feel like a kid again by jumping into a great workout or bring your kids and join in the fun!
Don’t forget about the Lego Store in Beachwood Place Mall –  your kids can get creative, buy a new piece for their collection and leave the mess behind for someone else to clean up when you leave!

Wade Oval’s ice skating rink is open until the end of March and every Saturday at noon is “Learn to Skate for Free”  – can’t beat that price. And if your kids get cold, you are just 100′ away from 1/2 dozen museums at University Circle.  The skating rink also has a snack bar with hot chocolate, popcorn and more. Admission is only $2 other times and if you need to rent skates, just another $3 (kids are cheaper!).
Want rock hard muscles?  Try an indoor rock climbing at Cleveland Rock in Euclid or Kendall Cliffs Climbing Gym in Peninsula.
Or how about a New Year’s resolution to take a hike in every one of the MetroParks reservations this year? Our park system is typically named as one of the top 5 assets of the region, so go out and explore. The MetroParks rangers lead all kinds of interesting hikes from night snow shoeing when the moon is full, to bird & tree identification. Just go to their on-line event calendar to find something near you in the next few weeks and sign up! Most are free. And the Cleveland Hiking Club leads dozens of hikes a month, sometimes as many as a dozen in one day all over the NE Ohio region. The Geauga Park District’s event calendar has something for every age and skill level from January on.

You can always get your groove back at a dance club. If you want to hang with the 20somethings, dance your heart out on a Friday or Saturday night at The Barley House or Velvet Dog in the Warehouse District, or if you prefer a slightly older crowd, try country dancing, the Dusty Armadillo (Rootstown near Akron/Kent) and salsa dancing is hot with lessons and dances held at Shooters Cantina on the west bank of the Flats most Saturday nights. You can also go classic and try out Verb Ballet’s open classes for teens and adults.  Or how about something totally out of character and try exotic dancing or belly dancing?

For bikers who don’t want to loose the edge in winter months, Ray’s Indoor Mountain Bike Park, is the world’s first all terrain mountain & BMX bike indoor track/park welcome, as are all ages (under 18 needs parental waiver) and skill levels.  It is only open in cold months and the 140,000 SF warehouse is on Cleveland’s near westside.
Or get ready for a winter vacation by taking SCUBA classes or if you are already certified, join a local club and get to know spots in NE Ohio where you can SCUBA.
And cold weather cities are great in the winter because they have had to create indoor spaces. Think of how many musuems you can hit in afternoon in University Circle. Have your kids run around the Ames Atrium in the Cleveland Museum of Art, grab lunch at the Cafe and explore the cool hands on technology in Gallery One. Have your toddlers experience the Cleveland Children’s Museum in its current location, one last time before it closes and relocates to new space to make way for a new development. Run around  in short sleeves inside the Botanical Gardens Glass House where it is always tropical temperatures (the RainForest at the Zoo will put humidity back into your skin as well!)
And the Plain Dealer posted a great 365 things to do in 2015 which offers great ideas for the winter months, day by day
To learn how Executive Arrangements can help connect your recruit or new hire to all of the activities in NE Ohio that will make them happy to be living in the Cleveland/Akron region, call us at 216.231.9311.