We know you also know that exercise is a whole lot of fun.

So you’ve probably been venturing out, taking walks or going to the gym. You’ve probably gone on more trips or expanded the physical challenge you were going to move through anyway, like going backpacking for a full day instead of two hours.

But there comes a time when you feel you need even more. You need a bigger challenge, a greater thrill – or maybe you just need a big, giant goal to get you going or get you excited again.

Extreme Sports for Extreme Health

That’s why we’re bringing you two suggestions of extreme sports to check out. These sports aren’t for the faint of heart. They require tenacity, will power, motivation and the ability to feel comfortable while feeling uncomfortable.

When not practiced correctly, these extreme sports can ruin your body and endanger your life. Therefore, they require patience, the love of learning and the ability to combine different skills. They also require perseverance.

When practiced correctly, they will take your physical, mental, emotional and spiritual health to heights you can’t even imagine.

Ready for a Health Thrill? Try These 2 Powerful Sports

These are not the best first sports to pursue. If you’re not very active physically right now, you will need to start your athletic journey elsewhere. That said, these are exciting, inspiring goals to aspire to.

We present them here to keep you ambitious.

Mountain, Rock and Ice Climbing

Climbing mountains, rocks and ice puts you face to face with nature at the backdrop of changing air and land conditions.

Mountain climbing, sometimes referred to as mountaineering, will have you hiking up mountains (or glaciers), sometimes all the way up to the summit. You will increase your lower body’s strength, yet also your upper body’s strengths, as mountain climbing usually requires carrying equipment.

Your breathing system will grow flexible as the air changes the more you ascend. You’ll learn to listen to your body’s signals and know when to push further and when to give it a rest. Navigating your way through the mountain will help develop your analytical, mental abilities as well.

If you choose to climb rocks instead of mountains, you’ll strengthen muscles in your legs and arms, but also in your chest and back, as you use a rope to go up. You’ll need to concentrate, which will help you practice focus and improve your mental health as you learn to be present in the moment. Your coordination abilities will expand alongside additional cognitive abilities as you’ll need to make smart, quick, intelligent decisions on a regular basis.

Rock climbing will also build your body endurance, lower your blood pressure, increase your flexibility, get your body better immune to illnesses and injuries, and improve your metabolism, lung and heart functioning.

Similar to rock climbing, ice climbing will have you ascending a challenging terrain while being tied by a rope. The difference is, you’ll be climbing frozen surfaces, such as glaciers and frozen waterfalls, so the skills and equipment you’ll need will be a little different (think crampons, ice axes and warmer clothes to start).

Nonetheless, ice climbing offers many of the benefits that come with rock climbing – with the added bonus of surrounding yourself in the ultimate winter wonderland, that is.

Triathlon

Triathlons require athletes to go swim in a lake or out in sea, then run back to shore, change to biking clothes, get on their bicycle and hit the road. At a certain point, the athletes leave their bikes and start running until they finish the race.

As a combination of three major sports, a triathlon offers many health benefits.

Swimming reduces infections and muscle pains, rehabilitates orthopedic injuries, strengthens leg and arm muscles, develops coordination and body flexibility, helps your lung functioning and breathing, encourages relaxation and is a great tool for mastering motor and emotional challenges.

Riding bicycle reduces blood pressure and cholesterol, works with various muscle groups, increases endurance, strengthens heart health and lung health, and improves coordination and balance.

Running is one of the easiest ways to improve heart and lung endurance. In addition, running improves the digestion system, reduces the chance of heart diseases, and it helps oxygen and sugar flow more efficiently through the body.

Combining swimming, riding and running together while training for and participating in triathlons is pretty powerful to your overall health. Your mental abilities will improve, as your stress level will decrease and your thoughts will become sharper and more creative thanks to the renewed energy and your ability to overcome the physical and mental challenges a triathlon supplies.

What’s your favorite or dream extreme sport? List one action in the comments that you can take within the next 24 hours to get you closer to practicing it or improving your abilities.