Go Outside!

When I was a child and my mother had had her fill of us, she often said to us children, “Go outside!” She had tired of our whining, or fighting, or complaining and figured the situation would be remedied if only she could get us out the door. She wasn’t particularly worried about the weather. Our house wasn’t air conditioned and playing under a shade tree was probably cooler anyway. She knew we’d figure it out.

Cold weather? “Put your warm clothes on,” she’d say. “Cover your head.” In some cases we made a beeline to the barn, but often we would scour the fields or wander in the woods –- great places for taming tempers and working out the inevitable conflicts siblings experience.

Today I spend most of my time inside—as do most adults I know, but I continue to believe many of us would be happier, healthier people if we spent more time outdoors. Apparently, I’m not the only one who thinks so. Consider the findings of Dan Buettner, author of The Blue Zones: 9 Lessons for Living Longer. From his interviews with people from around the globe, Buettner notes those who live the longest, healthiest, happiest lives tend to make the kind of physical activity that results from going outside a regular part of their lives. They don’t exercise for the sake of exercising, but rather choose activities like walking or biking to work or to the store rather than driving their car. Activity is part of their routine and lifestyle rather than something they drive to the gym to do.

There are undoubtedly many benefits to being outdoors, but here are a few that came to mind for me.

1) Stronger bones and better mood.  We benefit from some exposure to the sun. Use sun screen, certainly, but soaking up the daylight is important both for the production of Vitamin D and our bone health, as well as for an improved mood. Depending on your skin’s pigmentation, exposure to just 10-15 minutes of sun per day has been demonstrated as critical in the treatment of Seasonal Affective Disorder (SAD), the kind of depression some experience during the winter months after too little sunlight and too much time indoors.

2) Perspective.  Time outside can help you gain a fresh perspective on your place in the universe. The cycles of the seasons, brightness of the stars, vastness of the mountains or oceans, all remind us life will go on regardless of some things we see as critical in the moment. There is only so much we can control. The rest we must leave in the hands of a Creator greater than ourselves.

3) Community.  Certainly people do venture into the great outdoors to explore nature by themselves. Solitude can be a very healing and soothing experience for many. At the same time, going outside seems to enhance our opportunity to build relationships with others. Picnic or sit on the porch. Backpack or boat. Climb or canoe. Hike or fish.  All give us a chance to strengthen relationships with friends, family and neighbors.

Going outside probably won’t “save the world,” or cure cancer, but if I could encourage people to do just one thing to improve their overall health and wellness, I think it would be, “Go outside more often.” It’s just a start, but I think the rest will follow.