Established in 2016, we have led over 1200 walks and adventures for over 600 Escapees.

What is Escaping Your Comfort Zone about?

Body positive hiking and adventures for women and non-binary people. The outdoors don’t care about your size, your speed or your fitness, and neither do we! 100% body positive, no focus on weightloss. Just having fun in the outdoors, with new friends, cause we can! We want to inspire people. We want someone to look at us and say because of you I didn’t give up.

Established in 2016, Escaping Your Comfort Zone is an affiliated club with Bushwalking Victoria, the recipient of the 2016 VicHealth Sports Innovation Challenge, and the winner of the 2018 Vicsport Victorian Outdoor Recreation Initiative of the Year. We are also a proud supporter of This Girl Can Victoria.

A note from our Chief Escapee, Richelle Olsen (founder)

I’m Richelle.  I’m an Aussie 40-something, I’m plus sized, and I’ve cycled nearly 5,000 kms from Canada to Mexico, hiked to Everest base camp, run a 25km mountain race in the Spanish Pyrenees, trekked the Inca Trail, solo bike toured through the Italian Alps and Scotland, scuba dived in oceans and freshwater caves around the world, raced over 20 triathlons, solo hiked the Queen Charlotte Track in NZ and had a whole lot of other adventures in between. Learn more about my journey to starting Escaping Your Comfort Zone.

But I’m just an everyday woman, I’m not overly fit, but I love the outdoors, and I want to inspire and support other people to experience what I have, without limits.  You don’t need to be fit, you don’t need to “look the part”, it doesn’t matter what size, speed or fitness you are, all you need is a sense of adventure, and a willingness to step outside your comfort zone.

And I have discovered that the ONE THING that has made my experiences so absolutely unbelievable is DOING IT WITH OTHERS!.  Having like-minded people to explore with, to take photos with, to share an awe inspiring view with, to tell you to take just a few more steps.  And someone to share your tears when you achieve your goals.  That’s the key to amazing experiences, and it’s the people that make you want to get out of bed in the morning and spend a few hours or a few weeks on the hiking trail!

You might not want to get out of bed in the morning to join a walk, but I can promise, you rarely regret it!

So I’ve created a community where you can meet body positive people like you, without judgement.  People who understand the challenges you face, who can inspire you, and who you can inspire.  

The less you step outside of your comfort zone, the smaller it becomes.