Although disc golf has been a fixture of the alternative American sporting scene for some 40 years now—the first official disc golf course opened in 1975—the sport seems to have exploded into something resembling mainstream popularity over the past few years. That probably has something to do with the fact that disc golf is a relatively simple and uncomplicated pastime. There isn't a lot of money or equipment involved, and even the sport's best-known and most successful players are friendly and accessible.

But if you're still on the fence about whether or not it might be worth your while to pick up a Frisbee and join the disc golf revolution, read on. Here are five reasons you should seriously consider making disc golf a regular part of your physical routine:  

It starts out the same for so many of us: We play a round or two of disc golf at the urging of a friend, or maybe organize a game with fellow newbies out of nothing more than sheer curiosity. And then, as if out of nowhere, those one or two games become three, and four, and then five games, until we start losing count and realize we've fallen into a full-fledged disc golf obsession. And then what comes next? Naturally, we want to learn how to become better--how to take our disc golf game to the next level.