Pokemon Go as a Workout Plan - How to get the Most Exercise and the Most Pokemon.
Since then Pokemon Go has continued to grow and thrive as a game / competitive sport. It is basically getting nerds and common people to go exercise and compete against each other, so yes, it is definitely a competitive sport. Hence the old adage:
"All it takes is for one person to lose an eye and it becomes a competitive sport."
Losing an eye isn't the issue. People have died playing this game. Usually from not paying attention to where they were walking. So pay attention to where you are going!
But to be fair, people also die while texting, driving while distracted by food, crossing the street while their cellphone is in their pocket and it just happens to have the game open. The game is probably no more unsafe than say window shopping with friends or other innocent activities.
Speaking of which here are 8 Fun Ways to play Pokemon Go + Exercise in Toronto and you will note I have chosen to list ways which are also safe.
#1. Visit the Roundhouse Park train yard near CN Tower / Steam Whistle Brewery.
Known as Roundhouse Park it is brimming with Pokestops (and quite a few Ponytas, so if you need to catch a Ponyta that is a good place to do it). A five-six minute walk around the park hits 10 different Pokestops without ever having to cross a street or put yourself in danger. Thus you can literally just walk in circles for 30 minutes and collect approx. 60 Pokestops.
Also you get a bonus every time you hit 10 unique Pokestops in a row, so this is a good place to do that. The bonus gives double items (minimum 6, maximum 10) and rewards 100 XP instead of 50.
In addition there is also free samples at Steam Whistle, the railway museum to visit, Ripley's Aquarium just north of there, and lots of old trains to look at.
Home to many exotic plants, lots of squirrels and other wildlife, Edward Gardens also has 25 Pokestops. A great place to walk or bicycle.
There are many different trails and paths inside Edward Gardens, and it doesn't matter which routes you take you will always find lots of Pokestops and lots of interesting things to look at. I ended up spending a lot of time during my last visit just doing photography.
If you walk south from Edward Gardens there are trails going all the way to Sunnybrook Park and eventually E. T. Seton Park. So also a good place to hit some Pokestops and then go for a long hike afterwards.
Edward Gardens is a great place to feed squirrels and pet them. They have some very friendly squirrels there. The video below is one I made during my last visit.
#3. Graffiti Alley in Downtown Toronto.
If artwork is more something that interests take a walk / bicycle ride / skateboard / rollerblades down to some of the graffiti filled alleyways in downtown Toronto.
Between Augusta and Spadina, just south of Queen Street, is Graffiti Alley. That alleyway and many of the alleyways in downtown Toronto are rife with Pokestops. Exploring the back alleys also keeps you away from cars and motorists, which are the bane of Pokemon Go players.
If you are into archery, the archery range at E. T. Seton Park is also a Pokestop. You can shoot a round of arrows and then collect a Pokestop. Shoot a round, catch a Nidoran. Shoot a round, collect Pokestop again. You won't be hitting a huge number of Pokestops, but you will have a lot of fun doing archery.
Archery also involves a lot of walking (to collect the arrows after each round of shooting) so as a bonus you will get some walking done.
If you don't have your own archery equipment you can also get archery lessons.
#5. Catch an Onix in Downsview Park.
Downsview Park has many things you can do there, whether you prefer to walk or bicycle - but one of the things you can do is to look for Onix, one of those rare hard to find Pokemon. Onix has a tendency to appear near the west end of the park, towards Downsview Dells and Northwood Park. If you explore all 3 areas you will likely spot an Onix.
#6. Take up Bird-Watching
If bird-watching (or "birding") is something you have always wanted to do, here is your chance. You can walk around, take photos of birds with your phone, capture Pokemon, hit Pokestops, borrow books about birdwatching from the library (since libraries are often Pokestops), and basically become a great birder and have fun during the process.
In my mind someone should invent a phone app game similar to Pokemon Go, which encourages players to capture photos of birds to add to their collection. For people into birdwatching, it would be a fun game.
A good place to see both birds and hit lots of Pokestops (and a few gyms) is Moccasin Trail Park. The park is home to many historical plaques (like the one below), nature plaques about the local wildlife, and the above mentioned Pokestops / gyms. Also a great place for a bicycle ride / skateboarding / fishing.
#7. Take up Fishing.
There are plenty of different places to go fishing in Toronto. Along lake-shore there are many Pokestops and places to go fishing. There are also a great number of parks in Toronto where the fishing is pretty good. Moccasin Trail Park is one, but you can also go to High Park - which has a good number of Pokestops and an abundance of places where you can sit and collect items while waiting for the fish to bite.
When fishing I recommend getting up once in awhile and switching locations or even taking a break from fishing to walk around and enjoy the other things the parks in Toronto have to offer.
#8. Horseback Riding at Sunnybrook Park.
Okay maybe I am just biased here because I really like horses, but it seems to me that spending your time riding horses and either playing the game while on horseback, or playing the game when you are relaxing in Sunnybrook Park, is a good thing.
Also Sunnybrook Park is a good place to catch Eevees and a variety of water Pokemon.
There you go! 8 ways to have fun playing Pokemon Go, do it safely, and get exercise in the process.
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