Whether you’re training for the 2022 OneAmerica 500 Festival Mini-Marathon or earning miles for the Indianapolis 500 Mile Challenge and Gasoline 250 Mile Challenges, being active outdoors can improve overall health and wellness. Before the summer sizzles out, you can soak up the sun knowing you’re improving your mind and body.
Benefits of Exercising Outdoors
1. Lowers blood pressure
Regular sun exposure can help lower your blood pressure. Nitric acid present in the skin helps lower blood pressure by widening blood vessels in response to the sun’s rays.
2. Relieves stress, anxiety, and depression
Being outdoors can lower levels of cortisol, a hormone that’s a marker for stress.
3. Improves mood
Sunlight can also increase serotonin levels, helping to raise your energy and keep your mood calm, positive, and focused.
4. Improves focus
Studies show that spending time outdoors can help restore focus and concentration.
5. Can reduce inflammation
Researchers have found that people who spend time in nature have shown reduced inflammation and hypertension levels.
6. Good for eyesight
Going outside can improve the health of your eyes by alleviating pain or poor vision from staring at computers and smartphones.
7. Improves sleep
Spending time outdoors can help to regulate body temperature and the sleep-wake cycle.
8. Boosts immunity
Sunlight increases Vitamin D levels, which can help boost your immune system. Sunlight also energizes T-cells in your immune system to help fight infections.
9. Elevates Vitamin D
The skin’s exposure to sunshine enables the body to make vitamin D, which can have protective effects against a multitude of health issues.
10. Helps us heal quicker
Research supports that individuals who spend time outdoors recover from illness or injury quicker and relieves pain naturally.