The benefits of getting out in nature have been known at least since the 1850s, but not nearly enough Australians are getting out into the greenery.
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Physical and Mental Health - Exercise, Fitness and Activity
Healthy body, healthy mind! Physical Exercise, Fitness, Running, Jogging, Gym and Activity. Twitter Hashtag: #GymEd Curated by Peter Mellow |
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The benefits of getting out in nature have been known at least since the 1850s, but not nearly enough Australians are getting out into the greenery.
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Quotes from: https://www.washingtonpost.com/travel/2023/04/06/will-robinson-hiking-war-veteran/ By Andrea Sachs #Walking in #Nature. #Ecotherapy, #BlueTherapy, #ForestBathing.…
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Older adults who lived in an area with more green space had a lower rate of hospitalization for some diseases and dementias, a large study showed.
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Walking mindfully in the rain is a wonderful opportunity to get closer to nature, and our true nature.
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Whether you call it a fitness trend or a mindfulness practice (or a bit of both), what exactly is forest bathing? The term emerged in Japan in the 1980s as a physiological and psychological exercise called shinrin-yoku (“forest bathing” or “taking in the forest atmosphere”). The purpose was twofold: to offer an eco-antidote to tech-boom burnout and to inspire residents to reconnect with and protect the country’s forests.
The Japanese quickly embraced this form of ecotherapy. In the 1990s, researchers began studying the physiological benefits of forest bathing, providing the science to support what we innately know: time spent immersed in nature is good for us. While Japan is credited with the term shinrin-yoku, the concept at the heart of the practice is not new. Many cultures have long recognized the importance of the natural world to human health.
Forest bathing is not just for the wilderness-lover; the practice can be as simple as walking in any natural environment and consciously connecting with what’s around you. For a more structured experience, you can join trained guides for a meditative two- to three-hour ecotherapy excursion. Here are five places to try forest bathing.
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“Forest bathing is about walking slowly and quietly and noticing what’s around you – you might only cover 1.5 kilometres in three hours,” D’Appio says.
“You just notice that leaf there, this tree over here, that bug crawling on the tree. It’s just [about] being in nature and watching stuff and seeing what happens. There’s something really different about slowing the body down as opposed to speeding it up.”
D’Appio says research links forest bathing with a reduction in stress hormones and feelings of depression and anxiety, as well as enhanced immunity, and he says that unlike a hike to a particular summit, forest bathing seeks no “destination”.