Outdoor Green Gym - National Trust

The National Trust approached us to design an outdoor gym for adults and families to use, around the beautiful Penrose Estate near Helston, Cornwall. Recent studies have shown the importance of exercise and activity within the natural environment, as it helps to promote wellbeing and enables local communities to respect their natural surroundings.

By using the timber in an untreated state, the gym merges in with the landscape which is designated as an area Area Of Outstanding Natural Beauty and it was important to the National Trust that the landscape should not be disrupted.
 
The materials were sourced as much as possible from the Estate itself, specifically ash and chestnut wood felled within the grounds. Metal fixtures were purposefully kept to a minimum so each exercise station uses simple green wood joints and timber pegs in keeping with the provenance of the rest of the materials. The foundations used a traditional technique of ‘tampering’ which compacts the soil to support the uprights.
 
Swinging from the monkey bars on the outside gym in Cornwall; picture 1 of 9

Traversing across the monkey bars on the National Trust Estate

Outdoor gym sit-up exercise station; picture 2 of 9

The sit-up station is made from one whole tree trunk, which is hand carved to form a sit-up platform

Monkey bar close up detail; picture 3 of 9

Natural green timber joint to reduce fixings

National Trust information on how to use the outdoor gym; picture 4 of 9

Simple instructions etched onto a stainless steel plate help users to work on the outdoor gym

Stepping beams in the outdoor gym; picture 5 of 9

Stepping beams were built using timber felled in the same location, this forms a very sustainable fabrication process

Stepping beams a close up detail; picture 6 of 9National Trust outdoor green gym, pull up bar; picture 7 of 9

Using the natural strength of the timber to support the pull-up bar

Simple green gym instructions at the National Trust Cornwall; picture 8 of 9The pull-up station was designed to fit within the natural environment; picture 9 of 9

The pull-up station was designed to fit within the natural environment, by keeping the bark on the timber and using no concrete foundations