Day 2 - 20-minute Forest Walk

Today was one of those days when I felt like I did nothing but everything at the same time. 

I blinked and suddenly it was 30-minutes before I had to take my girls to dance class.,

I knew I wouldn’t have time (or energy … motivation … body battery) to get my movement after class, so it had to be now or never. 

So I strapped up the dogs and headed to the forest. 
Because when I’m short on time, I’ve learned this is THE best bang for my buck.

20 minutes is the “magic number” for tapping into the major wellness benefits of moving our bodies.
Elle Woods was right, exercise does release endorphins, but endorphins aren’t the primary culprit to causing us to feel happy after we move our bodies. We can thank endocannabinoids for that.
Research shows that 20-minutes of moderate exercise can triple the amount of endocannabinoids in your bloodstream.

”Green exercise” (moving our bodies in nature) triggers our bodies’ reward system even faster when compared to moving indoors.
When looking at various exercise environments, moving in nature proved to elicit greater stress reduction, enjoyment of participation, social connection, restoration of mental fatigue, and improved mood, self-esteem, and perceived health.

Compound those two things together and POW, I wasn’t just feeling better, I was feeling distanced from the stressors of the day and more connected to my own nature.