The second Hey, Health Coach column is out today! You can read the answer here, It's all about what happens when we go looking for movement that feels like freedom.
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I am in California. Hiking the mountains here healed me a long time ago, and it still does. I'm visiting my happy places for the first time in two years and taking a deep breath. It hadn't occurred to me until this trip that most of the spots that make me feel like a sane human—here and elsewhere—are outside.
This article from the Yale School of the Environment, Ecopsychology: How Immersion in Nature Benefits Your Health, digs into the research about how getting outside bolsters our mental and physical health.
"How long does it take to get a dose of nature high enough to make people say they feel healthy and have a strong sense of well-being? Precisely 120 minutes... The studies point in one direction: Nature is not only nice to have, but it’s a have-to-have for physical health and cognitive function."
That's 120 minutes per week, a "hard boundary" above which people see huge benefits, below which they see very little. It's a doable goal for many, but not everybody is lucky enough to have proximity to nature and a safe place to be outside. If you're able, step out, in whatever doses you can, a couple of hours a week!
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