According to a recent scientific report, spending at least 120 minutes a week in nature is often associated with good health and wellbeing. Spending time outdoors has been found to have many benefits, including reduced risk of depression and anxiety, improved sleep quality, and reduced risk of obesity. Studies show that spending just 10 minutes outside per day can lead to a 20% drop in the risk of developing Seasonal Affective Disorder (SAD).
The Benefits of Being Outdoors:
There are many benefits of being outdoors, here are just a few of them:
- Increases your body’s natural production of serotonin, which is often referred to as the ‘happiness’ hormone. As a result, spending more time outdoors could help you improve your mental health.
- Allows you to get up close and personal with nature, which in turn, could help you to discover who you really are.
- Encourages you to become more active, which could help you achieve your fitness goals or maintain a healthy weight.
- Can help reduce feelings of stress and anxiety, giving your mind a chance to process any emotions and re-set.
Tips On Ways To Spend More Time Outdoors
However, when dealing with a jam-packed schedule, it can sometimes be hard to get outdoors, to begin with. With that in mind, here are some top tips that you can use to spend more of your time outside!
There are many ways to spend more time outdoors. One way is to go for a walk or jog in the morning. Another is to go for a bike ride during the day. It’s important to get out and enjoy the fresh air and sunshine while we can. Some people like to visit parks and gardens, others prefer to take a stroll along the beach, and still, others enjoy hiking in nature. The list of outdoor activities is endless, so it’s up to you what you want to do! But here are some suggestions on ways to spend more time outdoors:
Exercise outdoors
A varied workout routine is a successful one – which means you don’t have to spend all of your time in the gym if you want to get fit. In fact, exercising outdoors could be a great way to take your workout to the next level, as it encourages you to try a range of new activities such as running, cycling, or even swimming. Furthermore, when we are outside, we are often much more alert and focused, meaning that your workouts may also be more effective if they take place outside.
Go camping
Travelling is also a great way to spend more time outdoors – especially when you get to visit a country or town you have never stepped foot in before. For example, you’ll likely be much more tempted to get and explore on vacation than you would be in your daily life. However, if you’re looking for a truly ‘outdoorsy’ holiday, then you can’t go wrong with camping.
Camping is unlike any other vacation – as you get to literally sleep under the stars each night. However, if you’ve never been camping before, you must have access to all of the necessary equipment required to stay safe when out in nature. However, thanks to sites such as EcoGear FX, buying this equipment has never been easier – whether you’re looking for battery-powered torches or portable chargers.
Start your morning with a walk
As mentioned previously, sometimes life gets in the way of our desire to spend more time outdoors. Therefore, if you feel as though you are chained to your desk or sofa, you can push yourself to get outdoors more by starting each morning with a walk. Not only is this a great way to start your day off on the right foot (and fight off fatigue while doing so), there are also plenty of health benefits associated with a morning walk. While a quick walk around your block will make a huge difference to both your health and happiness, you might want to walk all the way to work if your workplace is nearby.
Leave a Reply