One thing that can help get your mind back into gear is exposing it to restorative environments, which, research has found, generally means the great outdoors. One study found that people's mental energy bounced back even when they just looked at pictures of nature. (Pictures of city scenes had no such effect.)
"Every green environment improved both self-esteem and mood," found an analysis of 10 earlier studies about so-called "green exercise." That review also indicated that "the mentally ill had one of the greatest self-esteem improvements."
Great Outdoors: 12
Studies in Japan, where "shinrin-yoku" or "forest-bathing" is considered a form of preventative medicine, have also found that areas with greater forest coverage have lower mortality rates from a wide variety of cancers.
A recent study published in Environmental Health Perspectives found a similar connection: greater exposure to greenness was associated with a 12% lower mortality rate. The biggest improvements were related to reduced risk of death from cancer, lung disease, and kidney disease.
Algonquin Provincial Park, just three hours north of Toronto, offers easy access to Ontario's amazing wilderness and is Ontario's most popular park. The lakes and forests, home to black bears, wolves, moose, and deer, provide great opportunities for outdoor adventures.
Another great stop is Old Woman Bay. You can pull in here off the main highway to stretch your legs on a huge section of beach and look out to a dramatic cliff wall across the bay. Picnic tables and restrooms are located here.
French River Provincial Park covers an area along the French River reaching down to Georgian Bay. This area is almost all backcountry and accessed mainly by boat or canoe. It's a particularly popular area for canoers and kayakers, and great for a weekend canoe trip. Campsites spread out along the river and on the islands in Georgian Bay.
Imagine a massive sand dune that descends directly into clear blue waters and that's what you'll find at Sandbanks. Just a couple of hours' drive east of Toronto, Sandbanks Provincial Park makes a great summer getaway destination, with beaches, picnic areas, and camping.
Since 2015, the program has supported diverse, community-based coalitions, made up of local governments, schools, health-based organizations, youth-serving nonprofits, and others, in providing outdoor programming and employment opportunities through a flexible framework. Each unique coalition is built to reflect its community. Together, these coalitions elevate the voices of youth as they create greater access to the outdoors for everyone to enjoy.
Playing in the water is a great way for your dog to keep cool. You can play fetch through the sprinkler, hose them down, or let them paddle at the beach. Another fun game is bobbing for kibble. Fill a kiddie pool with a few inches of water and toss in a handful of kibble or other treats like apple slices. Let your dog jump in and retrieve the treats.
The Memorandum called on the Secretaries of the Interior and of Agriculture, the Administrator of the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), and the Chair of the Council on Environmental Quality (CEQ) to lead the Initiative, in coordination with the Departments of Defense, Commerce, Housing and Urban Development, Health and Human Services, Labor, Transportation, Education, and the Office of Management and Budget to develop a 21st century conservation agenda that builds on successes in communities across the country, and starts a national dialogue about enjoying America's great outdoors.
Escape rooms are taking the United States by storm! The goal of the game is to find a way out of a locked room within the given time limit. Work as a team to solve logical puzzles, uncover clues, and follow the storyline to unravel the mystery. Each riddle brings you one step closer to the ultimate escape! Escape room games are great for a night out with friends, a date, a birthday celebration, or a team-building activity in the United States.
The inclusion of outdoor chalkboards, and spaces like the amphitheater and pavilion, make it easier for teachers to transition the whole class outside and have a seamless teaching experience. Burns notes that encouraging teacher comfort in outdoor environments is key to their usage and achieving maximum benefits for students. He believes for schools prioritizing outdoor learning, they must also actively support ongoing staff development related to the confident use of outdoor spaces. The setting and tools are different, and preparing teachers for success enables students to have more freedom and a greater voice in the outdoor learning venue.
Becky Brady, AIA, CDT, LEED AP BD+C, specializes in K-12 and educational design. As a member of a national taskforce created by the Association for Learning Environments (A4LE), Becky studied the many different aspects that impact school safety. To learn more about our K-12 practice or to discuss the impact of outdoor experiences for K-12 students in greater detail, please contact Becky at rbrady@clarknexsen.com or 919.828.1876.
A great alternative to a chest strap monitor, the TICKR HR Monitor comes with two different sized straps so you can adjust for fit and comfort, and measures heart rate and calorie burn during exercise. The armband has a water-resistant IPX7 rating and a 30-hour run time.
A great park for avid hikers, Meeman-Shelby Forest State Park has over 20 miles of hiking trails. Trails vary in length, winding through the forest and around lakes. Some of the trails are even horse friendly. The park is 13 miles north of Memphis, but the abundance of wildlife and outdoor experiences available here make it worth the drive out.
DEC's Adventure NY initiative was launched in 2017 to connect more New York families and visitors to the great outdoors. To provide for an even better user experience, DEC is making investments to improve public access to state land and water, upgrade campgrounds and facilities, and increase public awareness and information of all the outdoor recreation opportunities available in New York State.
The great outdoors means different things to different people. And if your target audience is looking for survival gear or accessories for hunting or fishing, Bass Pro Shop and Cabela's (listed below) are both sure to be recognizable household names for people located in the US and Canada.
The 2023 Western Hunting and Conservation Expo happened on February 2-5 and it was the biggest one yet! It was a great chance to come down to the expo and kick the tires, meet some of the outfitters...
Essentially, orienteering is to dump the kids somewhere and then they have to find their way back! If your children like treasure hunts, they should enjoy orienteering. The aim of orienteering is to navigate, in sequence, to different control points that are located on a special course, using a map. A great map learning and geography exercise!
Pretty et al.[11] demonstrated that green exercise can improve mental well-being and markers of physiological health. There is subsequent preliminary evidence at physiological[13-15], psychological[9,16,17], biochemical[18] and social levels[17], which suggests that green exercise might have a useful role in primary and secondary prevention of disease. Moreover, there is evidence to suggest a role for green exercise in rehabilitation programmes[17]. In addition, engaging sedentary individuals in green exercise could be an effective vehicle in driving behavioural change by improving adherence rates to exercise programmes[19]. There is still a need to investigate the mechanisms behind observed health benefits of the natural environment[9,10]. A greater understanding of how nature positively interacts with human socio-biology may be mutually beneficial to both health and the environment.
The focus of this paper is to identify literature regarding physiological changes which occur as a product of participating in green exercise. Additionally, the likely interaction between these physiological changes and the well-documented psychological alterations will be discussed with regard to their potential health benefits. Furthermore, the impact that the great outdoors may have on exercise adherence and motivation to exercise will be explored in the context of increasing physical activity levels. Therefore the aims of the review are the following:
Engaging in physical activity outdoors provides opportunities linked to better health which is unavailable from indoor activity, such as exposure to sunlight for sufficient vitamin D levels. Additionally, outdoor activity shows greater improvements in mental health compared to indoor activity[9]. Building on the health benefits of outdoor activity, including exposure to nature during outdoor activity, has a synergistic impact on markers of mental well-being and physiological markers[10]. The study to date has identified changes in cardiovascular, endocrine and autonomic function which suggests a psychophysiological impact of nature and green exercise. However, little has been done to identify the mechanisms by which these changes are influenced by experiencing nature. Although seemingly counterintuitive for the purpose of research concerning the great outdoors, the use of controlled indoor environments is important for exploring the alteration of physiological parameters already observed. This will have important implications for using outdoor exercise for rehabilitation or prevention of disease, especially cardiovascular disease. 2ff7e9595c
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