Last fall an old colleague of mine sent me a note that said, “keep posting your pictures of bike rides to break up the monotony of LinkedIn.” So I did. Then as fall turned into winter I started posting pictures of skiing.
Somewhere along the way I started writing “Go outside. It’s good for you.” whenever I posted my pictures of bike rides, skiing, dog walks, and other outdoor activities. Then I started to notice a trend that those posts were the ones getting the most engagement on Twitter and LinkedIn (my Instagram and Facebook are private these days).
I didn’t start posting those pictures and that prompt to get social media engagement. I really started doing it to break-up the tedium of scrolling through a LinkedIn feed filled with “I’m happy to announce…” and other self-aggrandizing posts. I put the posts on Twitter as an exercise in reminding myself to step away from the screen and go outside.
Reset Your Brain
On Wednesday I had an absolutely craptastic start to my day. Yesterday, I had a great start to my day but it went to poop around 8am. Both we’re caused by things out of my control. Both days could have been completely derailed by those things out of my control. In fact, they were.
What got both days back on track was going outside for a while. First, I took the dogs for a walk. That helped a little bit. Then later in the day I went for long bike rides (thanks to my awesome partner for watching the kids).
Going outside doesn’t instantly make me forget about the things that are bugging me. But if I give it fifteen or twenty minutes I’ll find that my mind begins to wander. After thirty minutes I’m reset. After sixty minutes I’ve almost forgotten what was bugging me earlier in the day.
But I Don’t Want to Go Outside
I have an old friend who is fond of sarcastically saying, “Maine is cold, but at least it’s a wet cold.” There are plenty of days when it would be physically more comfortable to stay inside. However, it’s a bear for my mental health to do that. So I bundle up and go outside because it’s good for me.
We make our kids do the same even though they sometimes fight it. Take a look at the picture below. They were having fun when I took that picture. They were not having fun, nor were their parents, when that outing started. Fifteen minutes into the outing it started to become fun. Thirty minutes into it and they didn’t want to get back in car. That’s a pattern with my kids.
Outside is Outside
I live in a place where outdoor recreation opportunities abound. There’s a ski mountain 20 minutes from my house and two more within 45 minutes (heck, I can see one from my backyard). I can ride my bike on logging roads and quiet back roads from my house all the way to Canada if I choose. But I don’t have to do those things to get the therapeutic effect of going outside.
When I’m in a city or suburb for work, I still get the same therapeutic effect of going outside. I get it by going outside. I have a fantastic ability to get completely turned around in cities even when using Google Maps on my phone. I embrace it and just walk for a while. And when that’s not possible I walk around the same block for a while. Case in point, a few weeks ago I walked laps around the outside of the O’Hare Hilton (BTW, you will get some strange looks from the doorman and security people if you do that).
Walk, Run, Ride, or Hippity Hop!
I find that when it comes to getting the therapeutic effects of going outside it doesn’t matter if I walk, run, ski, hike, ride a bike, or bounce on a hippity hop ball. It’s all movement and it’s all good.
I asked Google Bard for the benefits of going outside and it basically paraphrased this Piedmont article for me. In short, going outside for exercise is better for your brain than staying inside and you’re more likely to continue an exercise habit if it’s outside rather than inside.
Go Outside. It’s Good For You!
Stop reading this.
Go outside.
It’s good for you.