The Value of Spending More Time Outside

Scientific studies universally show that spending time outside is beneficial. It’s good for your physical and mental wellbeing, and can prevent a host of issues in both categories. But what exactly do you stand to gain by spending more time outside? And what are some convenient ways you can be outdoors more often?

Easy Ways to Spend More Time Outdoors

These are some easy strategies that can help you spend more time outdoors.

• Build an outdoor kitchen. With an outdoor kitchen, you’ll have a permanent, standing excuse to go outside on a daily basis. Cooking in an outdoor kitchen is arguably more fun, more engaging, and it makes for easier cleanup. As long as the weather is nice, you’ll always have a reason to go into your backyard. Also, outdoor kitchens make for excellent gathering spots, which is ideal if you plan on hosting a lot of parties or spending more time outside with people you love.

• Create a beautiful backyard. Even if you’re not interested in an outdoor kitchen, you can make an effort to create a beautiful backyard that you love to spend time in. If your backyard is sufficiently inviting, you’ll naturally choose to spend more time there. What constitutes an inviting backyard will vary from person to person, so create the type of environment that you’d genuinely enjoy. Some people love the idea of flourishing gardens and colorful flowers, while others would prefer ample patio or deck space. No matter what, you should invest in some comfortable outdoor furniture so you can truly relax while enjoying the fresh air.

• Schedule regular walks. Walking is a simple activity that’s available to everyone, and it’s good for your health in addition to forcing you outside. Unfortunately, many of us make regular excuses not to walk. Until it becomes a habit, schedule regular walks, even if you’re only walking around the neighborhood. Once it becomes a more ingrained habit, you’ll have natural, intrinsic motivation to pursue it.

• Visit local parks. Take advantage of your local parks. If there’s a National Park in your area, consider getting a pass so you can go there anytime you want. Otherwise, there are probably plenty of state and municipal parks within easy driving distance of you. Try to get to a park at least once a week.

• Get a dog. Dogs need to be walked on a daily basis, and they strongly benefit from recreational outdoor activities. As long as you’re prepared to care for a dog, you can get one as a way to force yourself to spend more time outside.

• Start gardening. You can also consider taking up a hobby like gardening, which forces you to be outside. If it’s time to plant some new vegetables, or if you need to pull some weeds, you’ll naturally be pulled outdoors.

Why Spending Time Outdoors Is So Important

Why is spending time outdoors so important for most people?

• Sunlight. Sunlight is highly beneficial, and arguably necessary for human flourishing. Absorbing sunlight is the main way we produce vitamin D, which is essential for our physical health, and simply spending more time in the sunshine can boost your mood and reduce your stress.

• Fresh air. As you might imagine, indoor environments almost always have lower air quality than outdoor environments, even if you maintain a very clean building. Fresh air is, almost by definition, refreshing, and it’s good for your lungs to breathe it in regularly.

• Stress relief. Although it seems like some kind of folk magic, the truth is that most of us feel less stressed when we spend more time outside. Some combination of variables makes us feel more relaxed and at home, and it can make the most stressful and least enjoyable parts of your life seem less miserable.

• Exercise. It’s certainly possible to spend time outside without exercising; for example, you could go sunbathing or simply read a book in a chair. However, most of us are forced to get some kind of physical exercise simply by being outdoors. At the very least, we have ample opportunity to walk around. Physical exercise is extremely beneficial and practically necessary for human health, so anything that gets you to exercise more is probably a good thing.

• Eye health. Computer vision syndrome is a set of symptoms that can develop in response to eye strain, which itself results from spending too much time staring at digital screens. Being outside is a great way to break from digital screens, rest your eyes, and support your overall eye health.

It’s hard to overstate the value of outdoor time, but many of us still find excuses not to get it. If you can follow at least some of the strategies in this guide, you’ll be in a much better position to reap the benefits.