What is green exercise?
Despite the widely-known benefits of physical activity to our wellbeing, 1 in 4 adults across the world are insufficiently active. Sedentary lifestyles are associated with a number of mental health problems such as depression and anxiety, physical health conditions including cardiac disease and cancers, and reduced wellbeing. The guidelines recommend 150 minutes of moderate physical activity, or 75 minutes of vigorous activity per week. Individuals who exceed this are shown to have significantly lower risk levels for breast cancer, colon cancer, diabetes, heart disease and stroke.
Exposure to nature also has many physical and mental benefits. For example, walking in a natural environment has a restorative effect on the brain as natural stimuli catches attention in a relaxed fashion as opposed to the dramatic attention-grabbing stimuli of urban environments, necessary to avoid being hit by a car for example. The information processing required by urban environments can cause fatigue of our directed attention as we have to be 'switched-on' at all times, thus natural environments give directed-attention abilities a chance to replenish. Furthermore, greater exposure to natural environments is associated with lower rates of depression, lower blood pressure, reduced levels of anxiety, and improved social connections.
Green Exercise
Recent research has focused on a synergistic effect between the two, physical activity and time in nature. In fact, higher levels of physical activity is linked to greater exposure to natural environments. Green Exercise is the term used to describe physical activities while being exposed to nature and is proving to have many benefits. In one particular study, participants were asked to run on a treadmill while various scenes were projected on a wall beside them. The physical activity alone was shown to reduce blood pressure and increase self-esteem and mood but this effect was increased through exposure to pleasant rural and urban scenes. Interestingly, exposure to unpleasant rural and urban scenes actually decreased the positive effects of the exercise. In relation to athletic performance, in a study of track & field athletes performances in four different stadiums, athletes best performances came in the stadium that was rated the 'greenest'.
Not only does green exercise have physical benefits on our blood pressure, and pulse rate, or psychological benefits on our self-esteem and mood states, it may also enhance our enjoyment of the exercise we engage in. In a study of dancers dancing in an indoor vs. outdoor setting, those in the outdoor setting experienced more positive emotions during the activity than those in the indoor setting. Therefore, if you struggle with exercise or going to the gym, try get outdoors into natural environments and take in your surroundings while walking, jogging, cycling etc.
Green Prescriptions
Based on these benefits, General Practitioners are testing out writing physical prescriptions for sedentary patients to exercise more. So far, these are proving successful in increasing patient physical activity. In fact in the UK, the Royal College of General Practitioners has partnered with Parkrun to encourage individuals to participate in their local Parkrun. The programme is aimed at individuals who are least active in particular. Parkrun is a free, weekly, timed 5k that takes place in parks across 20 countries around the world. Inclusivity is at the core of its ethos as it is both free and non-competitive, encouraging everyone from walkers to elite runners and everything in between. It is as much about community as it is about physical fitness. Each weekly run is organised by volunteers who are regular participants. Runners and walkers are encouraged to give back by volunteering once for every 10 Parkruns they complete. Thus, Parkrun has significant potential for improving markers of wellbeing with its physical activity, community and volunteer aspects alone.
Get Started
Not only is green exercise shown to improve markers of physical, mental and overall wellbeing - it has also been shown that it makes walking and other physical activities more enjoyable. For most people, it should be easy enough to find a safe park to take a walk in today. Why not ask a friend to make it more enjoyable and increase your accountability to keep it up. There’s also always the option of Parkrun on Saturday mornings at 9:30am, check out Parkrun here. Whatever you decide to do, try out green exercise this week and you’re sure to notice instant benefits.