Love this post on so many levels Ben! I started doing an hour + hike in the hills near my office Monday through Friday during my lunch break. I had to extend my lunch break time and lose 5 hours of work/pay a week but the level of stress reduction I feel daily is well worth it.
Also, I can tout the science to my med school patients trying to get through the rigors of medical school.
That’s a huge investment in your peace of mind and future health, Bronce. I totally get it now in a way I wouldn’t have earlier in my career, when work was everything.
Even if your medical students feel that’s a step too far, I hope you can persuade them of the benefits of even small steps, like eating lunch under a tree, or walking down the leafier street.
Even if your time in Nature is limited to short sessions you may get more enjoyment, relaxation, and multiple health benefits from it by connecting to it in the way that best fits your situation. For example, many people feel overwhelm/stress from visual over-stimulation (like hours in front of a computer screen daily) so you might want sit, or lay down, outdoors and close your eyes and focus on:
* what you hear (birds, the rustling of leaves, the wind, the sound of a creek or ocean, etc),
* the fresh forest scents that reach your nose, and/or
* what you feel - the warmth of the sun, or coolness of a breeze, on your skin or simple calmness you feel inside.
Or you may feel like walking or running through the forest if you sit a lot during your work day and feel the fresh clean air in your lungs.
Or maybe walking barefoot and feeling moss or leaves or sand under your feet makes you feel calm and appreciative.
We experience the world in different ways so personalizing your time in Nature to the ways that are in tune with how you prefer to experience things can make your outdoor time even more enjoyable and rewarding for you.
My nature walk is a little different than you describe. It's a weekly walk on the beach. The ocean on one side, greenery on the other, my bare feet in the sand, birds flying. Followed by laying in the sand, eyes closed and enjoying the sounds of the ocean. Quite refreshing and relaxing
I am lucky to live on the fringe of a large city in New Zealand. Ten minutes from where I live is a working farm and huge trees on both sides of the country road. This is the road I walk most days. A fifteen-minute drive takes me to a redwood forest full of critters and birds. It is so calming and peaceful. Easy to get lost. I use an app to not stray. Many times, I sit under gigantic maple trees to watch the birds or other critters. After reading this article, I feel really grateful for where I live.
Hi, Gita. They sounds like beautiful places. How wonderful to have them on your doorstep.
I have such a soft spot for New Zealand. It’s one of the few places I’ve travelled to where if they’d told me I could never leave, I’d have been okay with that.
Thank you, Ben, for writing that article. I will be very mindful of walking in nature as much as possible. I am very grateful that I live in New Zealand. Nature is accessible even if you live in a large city, as most of our cities have large green belts in the middle of the cities, which are full of birds and other small critters that have made their homes in the wooded areas.
Love this post on so many levels Ben! I started doing an hour + hike in the hills near my office Monday through Friday during my lunch break. I had to extend my lunch break time and lose 5 hours of work/pay a week but the level of stress reduction I feel daily is well worth it.
Also, I can tout the science to my med school patients trying to get through the rigors of medical school.
That’s a huge investment in your peace of mind and future health, Bronce. I totally get it now in a way I wouldn’t have earlier in my career, when work was everything.
Even if your medical students feel that’s a step too far, I hope you can persuade them of the benefits of even small steps, like eating lunch under a tree, or walking down the leafier street.
Nature has always been pure pleasure for me.
Even if your time in Nature is limited to short sessions you may get more enjoyment, relaxation, and multiple health benefits from it by connecting to it in the way that best fits your situation. For example, many people feel overwhelm/stress from visual over-stimulation (like hours in front of a computer screen daily) so you might want sit, or lay down, outdoors and close your eyes and focus on:
* what you hear (birds, the rustling of leaves, the wind, the sound of a creek or ocean, etc),
* the fresh forest scents that reach your nose, and/or
* what you feel - the warmth of the sun, or coolness of a breeze, on your skin or simple calmness you feel inside.
Or you may feel like walking or running through the forest if you sit a lot during your work day and feel the fresh clean air in your lungs.
Or maybe walking barefoot and feeling moss or leaves or sand under your feet makes you feel calm and appreciative.
We experience the world in different ways so personalizing your time in Nature to the ways that are in tune with how you prefer to experience things can make your outdoor time even more enjoyable and rewarding for you.
My nature walk is a little different than you describe. It's a weekly walk on the beach. The ocean on one side, greenery on the other, my bare feet in the sand, birds flying. Followed by laying in the sand, eyes closed and enjoying the sounds of the ocean. Quite refreshing and relaxing
Tom, that sounds amazing. How lucky you have that on your doorstep (luck I’m sure that you had a large hand in!).
I’m willing to bet you also feel that weight lifting from you as you get down onto that beach.
Yes, that's exactly what happens! I do it on Sunday morning so it's my version of church
I am lucky to live on the fringe of a large city in New Zealand. Ten minutes from where I live is a working farm and huge trees on both sides of the country road. This is the road I walk most days. A fifteen-minute drive takes me to a redwood forest full of critters and birds. It is so calming and peaceful. Easy to get lost. I use an app to not stray. Many times, I sit under gigantic maple trees to watch the birds or other critters. After reading this article, I feel really grateful for where I live.
Hi, Gita. They sounds like beautiful places. How wonderful to have them on your doorstep.
I have such a soft spot for New Zealand. It’s one of the few places I’ve travelled to where if they’d told me I could never leave, I’d have been okay with that.
Thank you, Ben, for writing that article. I will be very mindful of walking in nature as much as possible. I am very grateful that I live in New Zealand. Nature is accessible even if you live in a large city, as most of our cities have large green belts in the middle of the cities, which are full of birds and other small critters that have made their homes in the wooded areas.