WEBVTT - How much time in nature is enough for wellbeing?

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<v Speaker 1>Gooday, Hello, thank you for joining us on Healthy Ish

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<v Speaker 1>Dally Podcasts from Body and Soul. I am your host

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<v Speaker 1>of Felicity Harley. How much time do you spend outdoors?

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<v Speaker 1>Perhaps you go a day and you barely walk outside,

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<v Speaker 1>and then you spend an hour or so the next day,

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<v Speaker 1>and how much time should we really be spending outdoors

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<v Speaker 1>each week? Well, today we have the answer. I am

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<v Speaker 1>joined by lifestyle medicine physician doctor Jenny Brocketts. She's written

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<v Speaker 1>a new book, she's the best selling author by the way.

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<v Speaker 1>This new one is called The Natural Advantage, and she's

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<v Speaker 1>here today to remind us why spending time outdoors is

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<v Speaker 1>wondrous for well being and what is the minimum amount

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<v Speaker 1>required each week. Make sure you're listening to Jenny on

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<v Speaker 1>Extra Healthy Ish, where she discusses how to create your

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<v Speaker 1>own personal nature prescription. You can grab that one wherever

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<v Speaker 1>you get your podcasts. Jenny, Welcome to you Healthy, Thank

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<v Speaker 1>you for joining us today.

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<v Speaker 2>My absolute pleasure, Felicity just.

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<v Speaker 1>Joining us off the back of a walk, no doubt,

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<v Speaker 1>that seems very fitting.

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<v Speaker 2>Is you can't keep me out of the outdoors.

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<v Speaker 1>It's just even the word even you're saying the word

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<v Speaker 1>just fills me, you know, fills me with joy. I

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<v Speaker 1>need to we need to get outside. But tell us

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<v Speaker 1>why you're spending time in nature. Nature beneficial for us.

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<v Speaker 2>Well, there's been a lot of research looking into this,

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<v Speaker 2>and I think lots of people recognize that we feel

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<v Speaker 2>better when we go outside, but the research says it's

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<v Speaker 2>actually good for us on so many different levels. It's

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<v Speaker 2>good for our mental wellbeing. It helps us to recover

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<v Speaker 2>if we've been unwell, you know, if people are suffering

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<v Speaker 2>from anxiety or depression, or just feeling a bit overwhelmed

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<v Speaker 2>by life in general. But it's also super important for

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<v Speaker 2>maintaining mental wellbeing, so it keeps you buoyant, to you

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<v Speaker 2>able to manage all the stresses of life more effectively.

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<v Speaker 2>We're more resilient if we go outside more regularly, so

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<v Speaker 2>that's one benefit. The other benefit, which I think gets overlooked,

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<v Speaker 2>is that when you spend more time outside, you're often

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<v Speaker 2>more physically active, which actually gives you the physical benefit

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<v Speaker 2>of you're going to be a little bit more physically fit,

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<v Speaker 2>perhaps especially if you go walking or hiking or cycling

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<v Speaker 2>or running or any of those sort of things. And

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<v Speaker 2>the third benefit is the cognitive benefit when you go outside.

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<v Speaker 2>And I don't know if you ever do this felicity.

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<v Speaker 2>I do it quite often. If I'm stuck on something

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<v Speaker 2>and I'm chewing it over, chewing it over, cheering it over,

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<v Speaker 2>and I just can't find the solution, going outside for

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<v Speaker 2>walk will often lead to that insight. Aha, I know

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<v Speaker 2>what the answer is now. So it really does clear

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<v Speaker 2>our head, allows us to resolve issues and challenges more easily.

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<v Speaker 2>Plus it boosts our level of cognition. We're actually more

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<v Speaker 2>open to new ideas, we're more creative, we learn more effectively.

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<v Speaker 2>What's not to love about being outside?

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<v Speaker 1>How does it do this? Why does it do this?

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<v Speaker 1>Is it evolution? Is it the fact that we spent

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<v Speaker 1>millions and millions of years outside and then we came

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<v Speaker 1>inside and we're on screens and I've got too freaking busy.

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<v Speaker 2>I think essentially that probably is the answer. I mean,

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<v Speaker 2>that's what's being proposed. We evolved in nature, and up

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<v Speaker 2>until the last couple of hundred years, we spent a

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<v Speaker 2>lot of time outside, and now we've all moved towards

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<v Speaker 2>city life, which is not necessarily a bad thing. I mean,

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<v Speaker 2>city life can be absolutely great, but as a consequence,

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<v Speaker 2>because of all the stresses that you've mentioned and the

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<v Speaker 2>frantic pace of life, we've lost sight of the fact

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<v Speaker 2>that we do better when we go outside a bit more.

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<v Speaker 2>And I think the statistic that really blew my mind

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<v Speaker 2>was one that came out from the States saying that

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<v Speaker 2>majority of Americans spend ninety three percent of their time

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<v Speaker 2>indoors eve every single day. And I'm thinking, crikey. If

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<v Speaker 2>it's true for the Americans, is it true for us?

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<v Speaker 2>And it actually is. We've become indoor dwellers, if you like,

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<v Speaker 2>because if you think about it, we live in a house.

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<v Speaker 2>We might work from home, we might go to an office,

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<v Speaker 2>but we sit in the car, we sit on public transport.

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<v Speaker 2>We don't actually go out and walk places very much

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<v Speaker 2>anymore for whatever reasons. And that's what's causing what's called

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<v Speaker 2>the nature deficit.

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<v Speaker 1>I think you've read about this in the book, but

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<v Speaker 1>it was interesting because the pandemic almost made us all

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<v Speaker 1>realize this. You know, we can talk about the science,

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<v Speaker 1>but when we all were forced to go for the

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<v Speaker 1>walks once a day within the five ks, well, not

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<v Speaker 1>in Perth, but the rest of us to earlier.

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<v Speaker 2>Yes, less so in Perth. We were just constrained to

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<v Speaker 2>stay in West Australia. Wouldn't got allowed to get anywhere else.

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<v Speaker 1>Yes, yes, we probably truly realized we didn't need the

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<v Speaker 1>science to tell us how good nature was for mind,

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<v Speaker 1>body and soul.

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<v Speaker 2>We were desperate to get out. And I think that's

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<v Speaker 2>that was the realization that we hate feeling constrained and

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<v Speaker 2>not able to move outside when we want to. And

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<v Speaker 2>people suddenly got the idea of, oh, let's take the

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<v Speaker 2>whole family out for a walk, let's get a dog,

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<v Speaker 2>let's do something outside. And I was really hoping that

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<v Speaker 2>after the pandemic that we would maintain that healthy attitude.

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<v Speaker 2>But of course we went back to our usual way

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<v Speaker 2>of doing things, and so we didn't always maintain that

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<v Speaker 2>that happened, even though we recognized how much of a

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<v Speaker 2>difference it made at the time.

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<v Speaker 1>Now, I was almost horrified to read this and equally

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<v Speaker 1>horrified to ask you the question. But there is a

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<v Speaker 1>current minimum recommendation for time you should spend outside, Yes,

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<v Speaker 1>there is.

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<v Speaker 2>What is it? It's one hundred and twenty minutes.

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<v Speaker 1>Oh goodness, a week, a week.

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<v Speaker 2>Week a week?

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<v Speaker 1>Wow?

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<v Speaker 2>So nothing, it's nothing. No, it actually breaks down to

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<v Speaker 2>seventeen minutes and a few seconds a day. So the

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<v Speaker 2>question is do you have seventeen minutes and a few

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<v Speaker 2>seconds to spend outside? And I would suggest you do,

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<v Speaker 2>but we sometimes need to make that conscious choice to

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<v Speaker 2>get outside, to open the door, open the window, do whatever,

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<v Speaker 2>escape and step outside.

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<v Speaker 1>It's a great formula or a rule in your book

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<v Speaker 1>that you that I particularly liked, and it's from doctor

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<v Speaker 1>Rachel Hotman, twenty five to three rule. Can you tell

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<v Speaker 1>us more about this?

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<v Speaker 2>I like the rule too because it's simple and I

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<v Speaker 2>can remember it. So it's twenty minutes, five hours and

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<v Speaker 2>three days. So her suggestion is that we should all

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<v Speaker 2>be getting outside for twenty minutes three times a week,

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<v Speaker 2>regardless that we spend five hours once a month doing

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<v Speaker 2>something a bit more extensive, like go for a long

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<v Speaker 2>walk or a drive to a national park or something

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<v Speaker 2>like that, and then once a year go off grid

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<v Speaker 2>for three days. Now, the three days is actually important,

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<v Speaker 2>and I don't know if you've ever done this, but

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<v Speaker 2>if you go off grid, there's no phones, no laptops. Oh,

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<v Speaker 2>it's wonderful. It can take you three days for your

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<v Speaker 2>brain to really unwind from all the busyness. Of life

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<v Speaker 2>because we've got our phones with us all the time

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<v Speaker 2>twenty four to seven and we don't go anywhere without them,

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<v Speaker 2>and so it's actually been shown that it takes about

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<v Speaker 2>three days to stop looking for the phone and wanting

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<v Speaker 2>to connect. Isn't it interesting?

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<v Speaker 1>Gosh? That is interesting and also horrifying. How do we

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<v Speaker 1>work out our own nature prescription? And perhaps you can

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<v Speaker 1>talk about yours, and how do we actually go about

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<v Speaker 1>doing it.

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<v Speaker 2>I think it's important to work out what your own is.

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<v Speaker 2>I mean, it's great to have a rule like Rachel's

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<v Speaker 2>rule of twenty five and three, but I think it's

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<v Speaker 2>better to have a daily habit, something that you put

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<v Speaker 2>in place that just becomes part of what you do

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<v Speaker 2>naturally without having to really think about it, like brushing

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<v Speaker 2>your teeth. So for me, I know I'm going to

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<v Speaker 2>have a good day when I've been outside, especially in

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<v Speaker 2>the early morning. There's nothing I love more than stepping

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<v Speaker 2>outside when my first cup of tea. I'm English, so

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<v Speaker 2>I always drink tea first.

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<v Speaker 1>Yes, yes, not coffee like the rest of us.

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<v Speaker 2>It comes later. But I just love stepping outside and

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<v Speaker 2>just looking up, looking at the clouds, just noticing what's

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<v Speaker 2>around me and just engaging. The Japanese have this beautiful

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<v Speaker 2>word called com or ab. I don't know if I've

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<v Speaker 2>said that right. The Japanese listening was saying, oh, she

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<v Speaker 2>can't say that would but it means scattered light through trees.

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<v Speaker 1>Oh, And I think, what a beautiful word that.

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<v Speaker 2>I think it's we need a word like that, don't we.

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<v Speaker 2>And to me, it's all about com rab. I just

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<v Speaker 2>love seeing that dappled light as it comes through and

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<v Speaker 2>the shadows being cast. It immediately makes me feel calm.

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<v Speaker 2>So it's great for me to lower stress, get me

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<v Speaker 2>ready for the day, go outside, especially in the early morning,

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<v Speaker 2>because that early morning light resets your circadian rhythm and

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<v Speaker 2>all this sort of stuff, so you're bright eyed and

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<v Speaker 2>bushy taid, ready for the day ahead. And then so

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<v Speaker 2>I aim to do something every day. It's either walking

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<v Speaker 2>or I jump in our back pool, which I tell

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<v Speaker 2>my husband, do not turn the heating on. I want

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<v Speaker 2>it cold.

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<v Speaker 1>Do you want the cold plate?

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<v Speaker 2>I like the cold plunge. Or I just take the

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<v Speaker 2>dogs out. Just something. And so some people tell me

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<v Speaker 2>they go for a meditation, but that's what I do.

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<v Speaker 2>Then every week I go for a long walk with

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<v Speaker 2>some friends. So we've got beautiful national parks around us,

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<v Speaker 2>so we choose a different place to go and explore.

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<v Speaker 2>At the moment, we've got beautiful spring flowers out, so

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<v Speaker 2>we're out in beautiful spaces. We're looking at what's around.

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<v Speaker 2>We're noticing the flora and the fauna and having a

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<v Speaker 2>great time and having a bit of a chat as

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<v Speaker 2>we go around. So that's what I do. I also

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<v Speaker 2>love kayaking once a week, that's my other go to.

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<v Speaker 2>So my five hours is actually something I sort of

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<v Speaker 2>semi morph into my weekly thing. And then once a

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<v Speaker 2>quarter I try to encourage my husband to come away

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<v Speaker 2>with me, so we just go away for a long weekend.

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<v Speaker 2>And the other thing is we do love to go remote.

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<v Speaker 2>We go remote camping, far away from the madding crowd.

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<v Speaker 2>We pack up the car, we just take all our food,

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<v Speaker 2>all our water, everything we need and we go off

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<v Speaker 2>the grid literally into the great outdoors, the great sandy desert,

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<v Speaker 2>wherever it is, and we just love it. We absolutely

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<v Speaker 2>adore it.

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<v Speaker 1>A great reset. Jinny, thank you for coming Unhealthy my

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<v Speaker 1>absolute pleasure. Thank you, thank you. Well. If you are

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<v Speaker 1>not listening to this episode outside, I encourage you. I implore

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<v Speaker 1>you to get outside today and get that nature prescription. AH.

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<v Speaker 1>Just makes you feel better, doesn't it. And hey, we've

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<v Speaker 1>just heard about all the science. Jenny's new book is

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<v Speaker 1>called The Natural Advantage. It is out now. If you

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<v Speaker 1>did enjoy this chat, jump on at rate and review it,

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<v Speaker 1>or you can subscribe to this podcast. Of course, anything else,

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<v Speaker 1>head to body andsoul dot com dot you follow us

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<v Speaker 1>on socials rob Our print edition which is out in

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<v Speaker 1>your local Sunday paper, and until tomorrow, stay healthysh