Creates a balance between mind and body: The ultimate quest for the orienteer is to find that balance between mental and physical exertion, know how fast they can go, and still interpret the terrain around them and execute their route successfully.
Teaches self-reliance: Orienteers learn to be self-reliant since most orienteering is individual, and even in the team versions, teammates usually practice individually to improve and be better teammates.
Sharpens decision-making skills: It shows individual skills in navigating while problem-solving to locate each control. Decision-making is paramount: Should I go left or right? Should I climb that hill or go a long way around it? These decisions that constantly arise require thinking more than quick reactions or instinct; that is why orienteering is called the thinking sport.
Teaches how to think and act under pressure: Decisions are constantly being made under competitive stress and increasing fatigue, helping competitors become mentally more challenging in other stressful situations throughout their day-to-day lives.
Increases fitness levels: Most orienteering terrain is quite hilly and rugged, providing the perfect environment for athletes and nonathletes alike to develop strong hearts, legs, and lungs.
Increases cardiovascular capacity: Orienteering requires walking, jogging, and hiking, whose health benefits we wrote about. All three of these activities increase aerobic capacity and cardiovascular strength.
Enjoying time with nature: There is nothing more calming and centering than being in nature. We wrote about the health benefits of relaxing in nature– but exercising outdoors is suitable for vitamin D levels in the body and getting fresh air!
Increases self-esteem: It takes courage, endurance, and mental fortitude to forge ahead by oneself through unknown areas, particularly in unfamiliar terrain and forests. Every time one gets lost and finds their way again, self-worth and self-esteem grow.
Can be very useful and even lifesaving: This sport teaches self-reliance and terrain discovery to the point where it could save lives. Orienteers acquire the skills and techniques to relocate themselves and to continue to their destination, no matter what.
Become part of a community: The orienteering community is a great way to socialize while competing. Although it is a solitary sport, there is a sense of camaraderie among competitors before and after a meet.
Can be done anywhere globally: According to the US Orienteering Federation, it can be done anywhere you can make or obtain a map – “through classrooms, schoolyards, city parks, urban areas, residential areas, streets, state and national parks, and wilderness areas. Even better, you can orienteer in your community, throughout the United States, and all over the world. Orienteering map symbols and appropriate colors are approved by the International Orienteering Federation (IOF) and are followed around the globe (for example, blue stands for water). Therefore, if you pick up an orienteering map in China or Russia, you do not have to read Chinese or Russian to understand the map well enough to orienteer on that map.
The balance between the physical and the mind: The ultimate quest for the orienteer is to find that balance between mental and physical exertion, know how fast they can go, and still interpret the terrain around them and execute their route choice successfully.
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