Got an important decision to make?

Step outside, feel the fresh air, close your eyes and let the answer come to you.

Take a minute to think about the last time you spent some quality time outside, whether it was alone walking your dog, cutting the grass, or enjoying a picnic in the park with your family. If you cannot recall the last time you spent more than 10 minutes outside, this article will tell you all you need to know about why fresh air is so beneficial for our mental health. Maybe you have been saying your 5-minute skincare routine has been your downtime, or the 5 minutes you read a book for each night, but neither of these have the benefits that being outside has. Keep reading to take a better look at how fresh air can help even our decision making.

What’s coming up:

• How does stress affect our decision making?
• How does spending time outside affect our mental health?

How does stress affect our decision making?

Stress is a key factor when it comes to decision making. Think about when you have been under a stressful environment and forced to make a decision, maybe you couldn’t see any solution to the issue or you just referred to something you know worked previously. This has been seen in studies, proving that when you feel stressed you are unable to generate new innovative ideas, as you feel a brain fog and cannot process any extra information. It was seen in 2012, with a group of students who were prepping for a medical exam and were seen to make decisions purely through habits and decisions that they had previously made. However, in the second group that did not have any exam coming up, they were seen to produce new ideas and have the mental capacity to think outside of the box. From this study, scientists concluded by saying that ‘the brain resorts to habitual decision making because it exerts less demands on our cognitive resources,’ WaldenUniversity.

How does spending time outside affect our mental health?

Living in a society where in countries like America 1 in 5 adults will suffer with a mental health illness each year, we must find our individual way to remove this stress burden on our lives and live mentally free.

So how does being outside help? Just as little as 20–30 minutes outside daily is all health experts have said we need. Being outside provides us with fresh air and sunlight which is a natural serotonin release, read my previous article here to learn more about serotonin, this serotonin reduces anxiety, depression and stress, leaving us feeling revived after just half an hour outside. Other benefits consist of improved work performance, improved sleep regulation and of course lower stress.

So with these endless benefits of spending time outside, what are you still doing sitting on your sofa reading this article? Maybe you are processing a big decision at the moment, or in the next few months you will be facing a huge decision to make, remember these benefits of being outside.

Go for a quick walk round the village, do that bit of gardening that needed doing months ago, grab your kids and go on a bike ride, or even take your 30 mins of yoga practice to your garden. See for yourself, how you can process and decision-make 10x better with that little breeze in your hair and the sun on your skin.

Our experts:

WaldenUniversity, How Stress Impacts Decision Making | Walden University