Key Ways Outdoor Social Activities Make You Healthier & Happier

Time spent in green, outdoor spaces is the healthiest time you can ever have.

Outdoors bring out your positive feelings and moods, lowers stress and blood pressure levels, and makes you happier.

Engaging in social outdoor activities improves your heart rate and lowers your chances of developing common psychiatric disorders.

In a nutshell, physical outdoor activities are good for both your physical and mental health.

How Outdoor Social Activities Boost Your Health

Whenever possible, you need to get outdoors and spend time in nature. Don't let all the possible benefits of nature and the outdoors go to waste.

Here are six key ways and reasons why outdoor social activities make you healthier and happier:

1. Being outdoors in the sun boosts your vitamin D levels

Your body needs sufficient sunlight for it to create vitamin D. This is the vitamin responsible for fighting cancer, osteoporosis, heart attacks, and several other medical problems.

Also, when vitamin D is activated in your body, the body is able to shake off depression. Where else can you get sunlight besides being outdoors regularly?

2. Being outdoors lowers stress, fatigue, and anxiety levels

If you are feeling stressed or depressed, a day in the woods will be a great remedy. Research shows that besides getting the help of life coach training, you can combat depression by strolling in nature.

Also, studies have shown that exercising outdoors has better mental benefits than working out in an enclosed gym. Consider hitting the trails on a bike, hopefully in the company of your biking friends, whenever you are feeling blue.

You can also try out group hiking, playing games together, or even singing and dancing outside. Any social activity outside is a non-medical remedy for stress and anxiety.

3. You will feel calmer, less stressed, and happier outdoors

Natural light is good for your mood. It helps you to relax, cheer up, and have an unmatched peace of mind. That is why homeowners are encouraged to design their home windows in a manner that lets in maximum light.

But no matter how huge and well-positioned your windows are, you will never get more light indoors than outdoors. By extension, being happy allows you to exercise more and get your life in order, which, in turn, helps you lead a healthier life.

On the other hand, many people are unable to work out when sad, and their productivity at work is dented. Low productivity breeds trouble and more sadness, so the cycle of inactive, unhealthy life becomes hard to break.

4. Spending time outdoors slows down aging

Because outdoor exercising gives your body a stronger immune response, it is true to say that it can slow down your aging process by keeping age-related illnesses at bay.

Acquiring paintball gear or a bike and getting out there can potentially improve your T-cell activity and leave you looking 20 years younger than your chronological age.

The fortified immune system also means that your skin will be glowing and inelastic than it has ever been.

5. Being outdoors boosts focus and concentration

Time outside helps kids suffering from ADHD to improve their focus and concentration.

Research as of whether or not the same effect is possible in adults is inconclusive, but there isn’t any harm in believing it can, right?

6. You may heal faster when you are outdoors

Doctors advise patients recovering from spinal surgery to go outside more as that may help alleviate their pain.

There are also people who swear that spending time outside leaves them needing lesser pain medication.

This makes sense because, as you may know, patients recover better in the hospital once they are able to get out and expose their bodies to natural light.

So, which outdoor activities are best for you?

Best Outdoor Activities for Optimal Health and Wellbeing

Some of the best outdoor activities that provide a lot of fun, adventure, and enjoyment in addition to being great for socializing with other people and good for your overall health include:

I. Cycling

Just join a biking group and start reaping the cardio benefits of cycling regularly.

You can start by riding around your neighborhood for an hour every day, and then as you become an avid biker, you can test your skills off-road.

II. Hiking

If you are losing too much sleep of late and are now gaining weight and feeling unreasonably fatigued, just join a hiking group and you’ll soon regain your mental and emotional stability.

III. Walking

If you can’t do exerting, adrenaline-pumping physical activities, just walking outdoors for 30 minutes or more can do you a world of good. It’s a low-impact exercise that’s the simplest way to get fit outdoors.

Research shows that brisk walking on a regular basis can not only improve the health of your heart, but also improve your circulatory system and lungs.

Walking can also reduce your risk of type 2 diabetes and cardiovascular disease, while also helping you maintain a healthy weight.

Other fun outdoor activities you can try include camping, canoeing, and rock climbing, as well as sports like adventure racing and waterskiing.

In Conclusion

It is evident that spending time outside can help you overcome and avoid a myriad of health problems. Don’t let all the possible benefits of nature and the outdoors go to waste.

Go out there and boost your spirits and physical health!