Theres something undeniably special about being by yourself in the great outdoors.
Its also been shown to be extremely positive for our health and well-being.
Expand your definition of nature.
Photo by Peathegee Inc via Getty Images / Design by Stella Koh
If you live near a beach or national park, awesome.
If not, dont worry about crafting some bang out of idyllic experience in a gorgeous wilderness landscape.
Whatever nature you have access to is the nature that you could use.
Write yourself a nature prescription.
If you dont feel safe and comfortable in the outdoors by yourself, find a community.
The biggest thing that helped me get outdoors more and explore nature was to find community in outdoor spaces.
She recommendsfinding communityin whatever youre intolikerunning, yoga, birding, or gardening.
Seek out an experience of awe.
Plus, as research suggests, its also linked to an increase in positive emotions.
Meditate (even if youre not a meditation person).
Meditation, andmindfulness meditationin particular, has been shown to be extremely good for our physical and mental health.
But it can also be…kind of difficult or boring, especially for beginners.
Coleman says that many people who findmeditationchallenging are pleased to find it comes much more easily in the outdoors.
Let your senses be dazzled.
Inside, our senses get dead and dry from the lack of stimulation, Coleman says.
You dont have to meditate (ordoanything, really).
Do a sensory scavenger hunt.
Go one sense at a time.
How many colors do you see?
How many shades of green?
Can you describe them?
What do you hear?
How many layers are there to the soundscape?
Learn about the people, plants, and animals of the land.
Familiarizing yourself with the places you spend time outdoors can help you feel more at home, Mortali says.
Any one of those can be a really powerful doorway of connection.
Leave your phone at home.
We all spend enough time with our phones, dont we?
Go for a slow, aimless wander in the woods.
(And leave yourfitness trackerat home!)
Forest bathing is more about being here versus getting there, Kuang explains.
(Only if its safe, of course!)
(Kuang is also a fan.)
Find a sit spot.
You just basically sit, Mortali says.
A lot of formal meditation practices are about holding your attention on a specific anchor, like your breath.
The cool thing about sit spots is that you let your attention go wherever its fascinated, Mortali explains.
A flower bobbing in the breeze, a buzzing bumblebee, a slowly moving cloud.
This sort of soft focus is pretty much the opposite of squinting at a screen.
Its a very restorative practice to help us recover from attention fatigue from over-focusing, Mortali says.
Its nice to get out of our heads and into our bodies sometimes.
Returning to the same place over and over again is a common theme with restorative nature practices.
Because a tree is not just a dumb vegetableits a life form that has its own innate intelligence.
You caneventalk to it like you might a pet.
It sounds odd, Kuang says.
But Ive learned that a lot of people talk to trees!
Research suggests that nature fosters the creative process, and creativity in itself can be rejuvenating.
Bring along some drawing or painting materialsor try using the nature around you.
Try the same on your own for a fun experiment.
Pick up some eco-conscious habits.
Many of us have a really one-sided relationship with the Earth, Kamau says.
When you are in a reciprocal relationship, its beneficial for both sides, Kamau explains.
That truly is restorative.
(Check out ideas for living more sustainablyhereandhere.)
Focus on your place in nature too.
Kuang guides people to simply close their eyes and feel their heart beating and lungs breathing.
(People often notice both start to slow down, she says.)
Dont turn your solo outing into another thing you have to do.
Let yourself exist in a natural environment in whatever way feels most nourishing to you.
