Living in Lakeland, Florida, provides plenty of activities.
- The city is located approximately an hour southwest of Orlanda and a little over a half an hour east of Tampa.
It’s close enough to that I often buy tickets to Tampa Bay Lightning hockey games, and when family comes to visit, I take them to Disney World. There are, however, lots of opportunities right in Lakeland and the nearby vicinity. The Circle B Bar Reserve offers 1,300 acres and an ideal destination for locals and tourists alike. There is a series of well-maintained trails for hiking, cycling and spotting wildlife. The bird population is incredible, including waterflow, ospreys, bald eagles and various types of wading birds. There are also lots of alligators that range in size from a few inches to the length of a car. I like to head to Circle B Bar Reserve for a workout. The trails are clearly marked and hard-packed and offer incredible scenery. Because the weather in Lakeland tends to be especially hot and humid, exercising outside can sometimes be difficult. For the majority of the year, I need to complete the workout very early in the morning, to avoid the heat of the day. I really appreciate the brief winter season, when the low temperature gets down into the fifties. It’s a rare treat to wear long pants and a jacket when I go for a run or a bike ride. I am typically sweating profusely before I even complete my warmup. By necessity, I’ve set up a home gym that is equipped with air conditioning. I have invested into a stationary bike, treadmill, jump rope, battle ropes, free weights, incline bench and a yoga mat. While I would always prefer to workout outdoors, I can’t tolerate temperatures in the nineties and high humidity.