Photo by Oziel Gómez from Pexels
How do you feel after a walk in the woods or an outdoor adventure? If so, how often do you find yourself feeling less tense, calmer, and more focused? If that's the case, it's not a mere accident. Even if you've never gone hiking before, you may still be curious in what it has to offer.


Hiking has several physical and mental advantages. Weight reduction and decreased depression are examples of long-term advantages that may not be apparent at first (such as lower blood pressure and stress levels and increased attention).


Benefits to Physical Health

Since hiking is a cardiovascular activity, it has the potential to have a positive impact on heart health as well as blood pressure and glucose levels.


Hiking strengthens the leg muscles, improves core stability, and improves balancing abilities. It takes greater balance and core strength to negotiate the steeper terrain when the terrain is more complex and the climbing effort is higher. In order to keep you from falling forward as you're going up (such your quadriceps, glutes, hamstrings, and calves), you'll need to use a lot of your bigger leg muscles. As a result of the increased effort done by the smaller stabilizer muscles while walking on uneven ground, overall stability and balance are improved.


Hiking may be done by everyone, regardless of age or ability, since the difficulty of a trek can be adjusted to suit the needs of the person hiking, from an easy neighborhood hiking route to a demanding journey up a mountain. The more difficult the path is, the greater the potential benefit to your cardiovascular system.


The Advantages of a Healthy Mind

According to research, people who hike in mountainous places with altitude changes may experience sensations of valence (pleasure), exhilaration (or happiness), and tranquility shortly thereafter. Stress-related reactions, such as decreased levels of cortisol (a stress hormone) in saliva, were reduced after trekking outside, according to one research.

Time spent outside, according to Stanford University researchers, lessens rumination, or the habitual ruminations on unpleasant feelings. Spending time in nature has been shown to promote mental health and offer urban dwellers with the respite they need to lessen negative thinking patterns, according to the same research. When it comes to rumination and withdrawal, the subgenual prefrontal cortex (sgPFC) is one of the parts of the brain that is related to both healthy persons and those with depression.

Aside from these advantages, being in nature reduces anxiety and enhances cognitive and emotional well-being. Stress and blood pressure levels have been demonstrated to drop when people spend time outside, whether in a natural setting or a man-made one.

A Step-by-Step Guide

The benefits of being outside are well-documented, but what can you do to start reaping these benefits? To begin, use shorter treks on familiar paths close to your home to ease you into the activity. Footwear with a thicker sole provides a more secure foothold on potentially slippery and uneven terrain (hiking-specific footwear is ideal). Ankle injuries and falls may also be avoided by wearing proper hiking shoes (and when you may have less leg strength and overall stability). To avoid blisters, these shoes should have been worn in for some time.

Wear suitable clothing and bring plenty of fluids and food (even if you don't believe you'll be outdoors for long). Wear sunscreen even on overcast days to protect yourself from the sun's harmful rays. Use a map or an app on your smartphone to get a sense of your intended path. Even better, trek with a buddy to make the experience more pleasurable and strengthen your sense of community (which is also important for positive mental health). Having someone know where you'll be trekking in the event of an emergency is also essential. Tell us where you're going, how long you estimate it to take you, and when you plan to be back.

Try it Out!

When you're on a hiking trip, take a minute to disconnect from technology and concentrate your attention on your surroundings, which may help bring you a sense of calm into your day.