Strong & Vital, Pt. XIII - Supercharge Your Wellness Practices with Nature
In the last several articles in this series, we covered the four wellness practices I do myself and recommend to my clients and students. Today, we’ll explore how to supercharge those practices and elevate their benefits with nature.
The decision to take your practice outdoors isn’t just about a change of scenery, although that’s always welcomed. It’s a strategic choice based on clear benefits. Let’s look at the compelling reasons why integrating your practices with nature can significantly amplify their effectiveness on your well-being.
First, the physiological benefits, which include improved cardiovascular health, lower blood pressure and cortisol levels, enhanced immune system, reduced risk for chronic illness, better sleep and more energy. That, in itself, is reason enough to take a long walk.
But psychological benefits are interesting. I think we all agree that we feel better after spending some time outdoors – feeling less stress, mental focus, emotional regulation and an improved mood. But do you know why this is the case?
The reason is because of something called soft fascination. Unlike city or indoor settings that demand direct attention, which can lead to mental fatigue, natural scenes allow for effortless interaction.
Soft fascination is defined as a state of gentle engagement where your attention is captivated without requiring intense focus or effort. It allows your mind to wander and reflect. Because of the enhanced mental rejuvenation, reflection that’s more profound is possible.
The state of soft fascination sets the stage, but it goes further, into our primal wiring. Social psychologist, Erich Fromm, coined the term biophilia, comprised of two Greek words: life and friendly love. Fromm hypothesized that humans evolved to possess an innate affinity for nature and other living systems, and it’s this tendency that contributes to our well-being.
This leads to three deeper reasons why connecting with nature and bringing your practices outside is so impactful:
Enhanced presence: When you move your practice outdoors, the rich array of sensory input naturally draws your attention to the current moment. The sounds of birds, the feel of a breeze, the scent of the earth – these elements act as anchors, helping to quiet internal chatter and bring you more fully into your body and surroundings. This grounded awareness allows you to engage with your practice with a heightened sense of mindfulness and clarity, making each moment more potent.
Enhanced insight: The natural world is a boundless source of subtle stimuli that can spark new ideas and connections within your mind. The varied and non-demanding sensory experiences of the outdoors can unexpectedly unlock thoughts, make correlations, and reveal the answers you've been seeking. This richer sensory landscape, combined with the relaxed state of soft fascination, creates fertile ground for deeper self-awareness and breakthroughs in understanding.
Perspective shifts: Physically changing your environment can profoundly influence your mental outlook. Stepping from an enclosed space into the vastness of an open sky, the quiet of a path, or the view of a landscape can naturally broaden your thinking. It provides a visual and emotional metaphor for expanding your own internal landscape. This wider perspective is invaluable when navigating complex decisions or seeking clarity during life transitions, helping you to see challenges from a new, often more balanced, vantage point.
For professionals and business owners navigating midlife transitions, the strategic integration of nature isn't just a personal well-being choice – it's a powerful and often overlooked tool for your career and business success.
You know the demands firsthand: the constant need for strategic clarity, navigating complex decisions during pivots, and the pressure to innovate. High-stakes environments can lead to burnout and drain your reserves. This is where nature steps in as an indispensable resource.
The mental space you gain outdoors – that reduced cognitive load and enhanced insight – translates directly intosharper decision-making and a renewed capacity for creativity. Stepping away from your desk and into green space isn't an indulgence – it's a strategic move to replenish your mental energy and find fresh perspectives that can propel your professional journey forward.
Also, as you navigate significant shifts, your resilience and adaptability are tested. Nature, with its inherent cycles of growth and change, provides a subtle, yet powerful, mirror for your own capacity to thrive through transition. It offers a consistent, restorative counterpoint to the demands of your professional life, helping you maintain vitality and clear thinking even in times of uncertainty.
Now to the practical considerations of taking your practice outside. Here are examples of how you might want to adapt your practice in a natural environment:
Contemplation: Instead of a seated indoor session, consider a mindful walking session. Choose a quiet outdoor path—a park, greenway, or your neighborhood. The rhythmic movement of walking can support your reflective process, allowing insights to emerge naturally. Alternatively, you might find a peaceful spot to simply sit andmindfully observe a single natural element, like a resilient tree or the flow of a stream, allowing its qualities to inform your thoughts.
Journaling: Carry a compact notebook and pen. Find a peaceful outdoor spot—a bench in a botanical garden, a quiet area in a park, or your own outdoor space. Writing outdoors invites direct inspiration from your surroundings, allowing detailed observations of nature – what you see, hear, smell, taste and feel – to inform your inner reflections.
Holding a Question: When you’re holding a question to invite inner wisdom, try gazing at the horizon, a body of water, or the night sky. The vastness can mirror the mental space you’re creating for your question to unfold, encouraging your mind to wander, your thinking to broaden, and a sense of surrender to new perspectives. You could also find a strong presence in your surroundings, such as a tree, stream or rock formation, and silently pose your question to it, drawing on its stability and presence as you seek clarity.
Positive Action: If your practice is related to wellness, just doing some mindful movement is considered positive action. If you’re taking positive action toward an intention, the outdoors is the perfect place for the next small step to make itself known while you’re absorbed in your surroundings. This could mean walking a path with a purposeful stride that embodies your next step, or engaging in a small symbolic act of stewardship, like tending to a neglected patch of nature, aligning your outer action with an inner intention.
My suggestion is to have fun with this as it’s meant to breathe new life into your routine practices. It’s also a wonderful way to create hybrid practices. Here’s an example.
Toward the end of my corporate career, I purposely incorporated longer walks and stairs whenever I walked to a meeting. I was fortunate that the building I worked in had a lot of windows, a water feature in the atrium, and walking trails around the building. I routinely scheduled walking meetings or conference calls whenever the weather cooperated.
Now that I have my own business, I have more flexibility and take full advantage of that privilege. I get up early and step outside first thing. It’s a wonderful way to wake up. Depending on the weather and my schedule, I sometimes take my morning contemplation or journaling practice outside. I also enjoy working outside whenever I can. In addition, I try to find a break in my work schedule each day to get outside and take a walk. It’s not unusual for me to make an important connection during these breaks. And as a result, the rest of my workday flows with ease.
Now to you. Just as I've found ways to integrate my practices into my daily life outdoors, I invite you to conduct a similar analysis for yourself. The goal is to identify how your unique environment and daily rhythm can support your existing practices.
To begin, consider these four questions:
Which of your current practices do you feel most drawn to take outside? Perhaps it's the one you find most challenging indoors, or the one you feel could benefit most from a change of scenery.
What natural elements are readily accessible in your daily life? This could be a specific tree outside your window, a small patch of grass, a balcony, a local park, or even the feeling of fresh air from an open door. Don't underestimate the power of seemingly small connections.
When do you naturally find yourself outdoors, even for brief moments? This might be during your commute, a break at work, or simply stepping out to get the mail. These existing outdoor moments can become opportunities to weave in a mindful practice.
What feeling or insight do you hope to gain by moving a specific practice outdoors? Connecting to your intention for this shift can deepen your commitment and guide your choices.
By thoughtfully considering these points, you can begin to integrate these powerful well-being strategies into your existing life. Ultimately, the choice to embrace the outdoors as a space for your practices is a simple yet profound one. It's a pathway to unlock new levels of insight and calm, transforming not just your practices, but your entire relationship with your well-being.
By consciously bringing your inner world outdoors, you open yourself to a powerful, restorative resource that’s often right outside your door.
Journal Reflections: Which one of your practices could use a little supercharging? How might you amend it so it can be practiced outdoors? When can you give it a try today, even if for a few minutes?
Links:
Free wellness plan PDF: Action Plan Template
YouTube: The Athena Wellness Channel
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Email Kathy: hello@athenawellness.com