In light of recent events and being cooped up indoors for the past 3 months in quarantine, here are some reasons as to why you should consider working out and practising yoga outdoors in nature can improve your physical and psychological well-being during this time.

Doing yoga on the green rooftop at 401 richmond IN TORONTO, ON. — Doing yoga on the green rooftop at **401 richmond** IN TORONTO, ON.

I want to mention that many of my favourite yoga classes and functional fitness training sessions were hosted outdoors in parks, beachside and in the woods in uncrowded areas. If you didn’t know, I first became inspired to teach yoga after practising outdoors at sunrise and sunset on the beautiful cliffsides of Melides, just steps away from the Pacific coastlines of Portugal. There is a magical connection with nature when we match our breath, energy, and intention with the environments around us. If you have been missing your favourite gym, recreation centre, or personal trainer, you can adjust your workout and activities to take place outdoors.

Here are 10 simple reasons why you should get started!

1) It Energizes You in the Morning.

When you practise with the sunrise, you move with the natural circadian rhythm of your body. After you wake up, your body’s metabolism kicks in and your bodily processes like your adrenal glands start shifting. Birds, insects, and the general energy of parks and greenspaces are generally quieter in the mornings as well, allowing you to gradually become more stimulated with the sunlight and animation of life waking up around you.

2) You Become More Mindful of the Subtle Shifts of Energy Around You

From the rustle of the tree leaves to the echo of birdsong, you begin to take in the natural rhythms and melodies that make up the background soundtrack outdoors. At the gym or during our busy commutes, we distract ourselves or tune out of our physical surroundings with our headphones, listening to podcasts, loud music, or broadcasted news channels.

If you choose to meditate outdoors, you will start to notice how synchronized your body and breath become to the nuances of the wind and sunshine as they pick up on your body. Water and the lapping waves over the horizon are a great focus aid to assist in settling down in a seated meditation practice.

3) It reduces headaches, stress, and feelings of depression.

The colour green, found in nature is known to enhance the alpha brainwaves, which allow you to feel more calm and at ease with yourself. It also boosts your creativity and your resilience to stress. Getting enough Vitamin D from the sun can also boost your immune system, reduce depression, and create a ‘feel good’ sensation in the body.

By closing your eyes and using deep, expansive breaths in through the nose, you can relieve symptoms of headaches and stress as the hormone, oxytocin is released, lowering your blood pressure and feeling more connected with those around you.

4) It Challenges Your Balance and Proprioception.

Try working out barefoot in the grass or sand. Notice how the platform beneath your feet sinks in different directions when you stand only on one leg or weight-bear unevenly. While we have been blessed with supportive running shoes and flat surfaces at our commercial gyms and fitness studios, when you challenge yourself to all sorts of uneven surfaces outdoors such as grass, hills, sand, mud, and gravel, your body begins to utilize the smaller, stabilizer muscles that aren’t usually put to work when we feel firmly secure on the ground.

5) Falling Also Feels More Fun and Liberating

To add to point #4 about challenging your balance and proprioception, when you lose your balance, it often feels fearful to fall on mysterious surfaces that your body is not used to lying on for long periods of time. Outdoor surfaces such as fine sand, grass, and even mud have cooling and exfoliating properties that a paved floor or cushy mat inside your gym could not provide. There is something about the diverse textures of these outdoors surfaces that make it more fun to land on, if you do happen to fall and roll over from a particular pose or exercise.

6) You Lose Sense of Time Passing

Ever feel as though you are constantly checking your watch or the clock on the wall when you’re in a sterile environment such as the gym? Unless you have a very intuitive sense of the sun passing each hour in the sky, you are less likely to feel tied to the sense of time passing while working out outdoors. When the sun is out and the weather is pleasant, time seems to pass by very quickly, as the body’s expectations also begin to slow down. This sense of urgency is definitely enhanced in artificial environments and with the stimulation of our digital devices and notifications.

7) With the Sun’s natural heat, You Sweat More

Sweat is great for the body (it cools the body down internally, it removes toxins through the skin’s pores, it cleanses the body of unnecessary bacteria.) Even if your workout is not as intense, or if you are moving through a gentle Vinyasa Flow sequence, the sweat that you build up from being out in the sunlight does not have to be vigorous on your joints. If there is a breeze, it can help cool you down rather than relying on air conditioning that sometimes blasts artificial air on your pores.

8) It Relaxes Your Body and Mind for Sleep at Night.

Just as the sunrise perks your natural circadian rhythm down, the sunset, allows this same rhythm to slow you down in the evening to prepare for rest, digestion, and absorption of nutrients fed to the body during the day.

Getting enough sunlight during the day releases serotonin in the brain which allows you to feel calm and focused, but also enhances your sleep quality as you prepare to settle at night

9) It’s Fun to Work Out with Friends Together

There is no lack of equipment or intensity when it comes to creative workouts, meditations, or movement outdoors that you can do with your friends. Whether you are playing your favourite sport as a team, riding bikes together along a designated trail, hiking, or doing a yoga class together, doing it outdoors is accessible for every Body, regardless of your experience or physical activity level.

10) It’s Inexpensive and Accessible Anywhere!

You don’t require a monthly membership to access a park, trail, beach, or natural area outdoors to work out and be active. You can even designate an area in your backyard or communal terrace to work out or meditate in every day. As we move from being quarantined in our homes for ongoing weeks to walking, running, cycling, and setting up obstacle courses outside, how can we change up our environments while still keeping a safe distance from each other?