There are a huge number of health benefits for those who love spending time outdoors and enjoy the pursuit of hiking, camping, glamping and forest bathing… to name a few. It can be called wilderness therapy, ecotherapy or “I’m going for a walk” and it turns out it is essential for our mental health too so in this article we’re going to explore why camping can be good for your health.
Why Camping Can Be Good For Your Health – Advice From The Experts
In 2015 students of Stanford University were surprised to find they had a reduction in their anxiety levels when they took the time to walk through a park for an hour. The study conducted with the students demonstrated that they were less anxious than those who didn’t take the time to relax in nature.
But it doesn’t stop there as another study found that by visiting more websites like Inspired Camping and looking at images of nature can also improve a person’s mood. In fact, the difference between viewing buildings or a green environment were significant in the study. We like to call it, getting some green therapy.
How You Can Benefit
In technical terms, it has a lot to do with your parasympathetic and sympathetic nervous systems in your body. When your nervous system in is parasympathetic mode it rests and digests, which is one of the reasons why camping can be good for your health. This is also the mode it needs to be in to heal and recover from stressful situations, trauma and illness.
The sympathetic system is the opposite and prepares someone for significant activity. This is often referred to as the fight-or-flight mode and is the state you are in when you are feeling stressed.
The advice given in the studies shows us that being in nature helps you move from fight-or-flight mode into rest-and-digest, which is good for your body and mind.
More specifically you will find that your immune system will get stronger, you will feel happier, if you work outdoors you will enjoy it more, your heart health and blood pressure could improve and your mental health will also benefit. This is great for you and your family and it is definitely a reason to get outside more.
What You Can Do: Grab Some Green Therapy!
Go outside for 5 minutes to take some deep breaths, feel the breeze on your face and activate your natural awareness. Take a brief moment to be silent and enjoy nature playing with your senses.
Change the view from your desk so you can see a bit more greenery and nature. If you are trapped in a place surrounded by buildings then bring nature to you by surrounding yourself with pot plants.
Think about changing what you do and have a long term plan to start a new glamping business doing something you love and something outdoors. It’s a great industry to get involved in and, as a bonus, experiential services are increasing in popularity with the buying power of millennials behind it, especially in the USA.
When you get a chance to exercise, try to do it outdoors. Instead of going to the gym try to exercise in the park. Instead of swimming in the local pool try surfing at your nearest beach.
When you consider why camping can be good for your health, it’s clear that you need to go camping more often in whatever way you can. Whether it’s on a budget or delightfully luxurious and decadent. It’s great for you and it’s great for your mental health to go camping and glamping as much as possible.
