Outside Awe (City or Country)

 

Researchers at University of Berkley studied “Awe” in response to nature.

Five studies combined showed that awe, “an emotional response to something that transcends our frame of reference” has immediate health benefits.

Awe makes us feel more generous, more humble, happier and healthier. Awe also sharpens our thinking.

 

The same researchers also say that to feel awe,  simple things do the trick.  To feel awe we just need to gaze up into the branches of trees, they say in this study.

 

It is Awesome When My Sons Visit

It is awesome when my sons visit. To amp up the emotion of being together again,  we get outside, look up, look around, and do feel that sense of awe.

I remind them to breathe deeply often. We are breathing in antimicrobials, anti-inflammatories, antiseptics, and more, I say to them.

Tree air is our natural pharmacy, I tell them. And they don’t roll their eyes anymore. They understand the the science.

 

We are in Manitoba beside the Winnipeg River and Lake Winnipeg. The Boreal forests surround us. We are in awe most of the time.

My heart is full. I am getting precious time with my son who is now living and working in London, England.

While we stop on our bikes he tells me about his bike commute to work. Most of his investment banking colleagues cycle to work. My son says when he is biking he can’t think about work. When on his bike, he takes in this outside world. .

This is my son’s bike route In London, England

He lives in Clapham Common. He rides his bike along Wandsworth to Lambeth Bridge. Along this route he sees The London Eye, The Palace of Westminster, and Big Ben.

He bikes down Millbank to Parliament Square. Over to Horse Guards Road (Embassy Row) and left along St James Park. Up The Mall to Buckingham Palace. Right onto Mayfair (the heart of London’s business district) and his office.

As Long As the View is Pleasant: City or Country Works

Department of Biological Sceinces, University of Essex, Colchester, UK Researcher Pretty show that as long as the ride is “pleasant” urban or rural settings have the same great effects.

“A pleasant exercise experience in the city or in the country have a greater effect on mood, self esteem and happiness than exercise in the gym.”

As the study explains “Exercise alone significantly reduced blood pressure, increased self-esteem, and had a positive significant effect on 4 of 6 mood measures. Both rural and urban pleasant scenes produced a significantly greater positive effect on self-esteem than the exercise-only control.”

So it shows that exercise outside or green exercise augments the effects of exercise alone. And as long as the experience is a nice one, it can be anywhere as long as you are outside.

So go outside for all kinds of reasons. And as long as it is a pleasant scene you will amplify your mood, self esteem, health and sense of awe. Awesome!

Please say it with me: Healthy Tree, Healthy Me,

Verla

 

 

 

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