Exercise in a natural environment can provide more benefits than exercise indoors

Health professionals and fitness enthusiasts have long known that regular physical activity has benefits numerous health benefitsincluding the prevention of chronic conditions such as cardiovascular disease, diabetes, some cancers and osteoporosis.

In addition, exercise improves immune function and pain management, reduces fall risk and extends life expectancy. Mental health benefits include improved mood, reduced anxiety and a reduced risk of dementia and depression.

Despite all these benefits, more than three in four adults in the United States exercise much less than usual the recommended one 150 to 300 minutes per week of moderate physical activity or 75 to 150 minutes per week of vigorous physical activity.

Research has also shown that outdoor places, such as parks and walking trails, are effective institutions for physical activity. The COVID-19 pandemic has made this especially clear. Moreover, being in nature offers a solution physical and mental health benefits similar to that of physical activity.

To date, little is known about any additional benefits of physical activity in a natural environment. Could being outdoors increase the effects of exercise while encouraging more people to exercise? And if so, how can health professionals promote this behavior?

To answer these questions and more, Jay Maddock, Regents Professor in the School of Public Health at Texas A&M University and director of the university-led, collaborative Center for Health & Nature, along with Howard Frumkin, Hagler Fellow and senior vice president and director of the Land and People Lab, reviewed current scientific evidence regarding physical activity in natural environments and developed strategies to promote these activities.

Their study, published in the American Journal of Lifestyle Medicine, has identified several factors that influence how often people visit parks and nature reserves, the extent to which they engage in physical activity there and the benefits they receive from this activity.

Maddock and Frumkin discovered that research suggests that exercising in a park or other natural environment is more beneficial than exercising indoors. However, these studies focused on short-term results lasting less than a year, and whether these benefits materialize in the long term remains to be seen.

“Despite this, the research is clear that natural environments can be an effective location for promoting physical activity,” Maddock said. “People generally enjoy being outdoors, with parks, trails and community gardens being the most popular locations.”

Factors that make these locations more attractive to visitors include: physical characteristics such as community centres, playgrounds, lighting and clear signage natural properties such as tree canopies and water bodies that are well maintained. Activities such as classes and festivals also contribute to their popularity, like a hospitable environment, a sense of security and a strong sense of security among visitors connection with nature And believe that spending time in these spaces is important.

“Parks and trails are particularly important because of their accessibility and widespread availability, but access varies considerably by geography, and rural areas often have less access to natural areas because they have more private property,” Maddock said.For exampleNearly 98 percent of Illinoisans live within a quarter mile of a park, compared to just 29 percent in Mississippi.”

Maddock and Frumkin also found the use of parks and green spaces for physical activity varies by demographic group, with men more likely than women to use these spaces for physical activity. In addition, a study of parks in Los Angeles found that black adults are less likely than white adults to participate in physical activity in parks, while English-speaking Latinos are equally likely and Asian/Pacific Islanders are more likely.

“Some groups – for example, Black, Indigenous and other people of color, and immigrant and refugee populations – have often faced historical or current discrimination that hinders their use of natural areas. have less access to high-quality parks,” Frumkin said. “Moreover childrenthe elderly And People with Disabilities face challenges in accessing nature reserves. Ensuring these spaces are safe and easy to navigate, with proper programming, can increase the use of parks and other natural environments.”

With this complexity in mind, Maddock and Frumkin offer four options that healthcare professionals can implement to encourage their patients’ use of parks and other natural environments.

One of these is simply “prescribing” nature contact to patients.

“Recommending that patients spend more time in these environments is known as nature prescriptions or ‘ParkRx,’ and while more research is needed, the studies to date suggest this approach is effective,” Maddock said.

Another is that health professionals can model this behavior by engaging in it themselves. This modeling has been shown to be effective in promoting healthy behaviors while improving the well-being of healthcare workers.

A third approach is for health care workers to participate in community efforts that promote the use of outdoor spaces, such as Houston’s Be Well Communities initiative, which is supported by the MD Anderson Cancer Center.

Finally, health professionals could help create and maintain parks and green spaces by directing funds to these efforts through Community Health Need Assessments, Medicaid funds, and health care transition foundation funds.

“It is clear that using parks and natural environments for physical activity could be a potentially powerful tool to promote two important health behaviors simultaneously,” Maddock said. “This could be especially important because the majority of Americans don’t get enough exercise or spend enough time outdoors.”