Your garden can be transformed into a serene sanctuary where you connect with nature and restore your mind and body.
Discover the harmonious blend of ‘Garden Yoga’ by combining the healing powers of yoga with the beauty of your outdoor space.
This enriching practice not only improves your physical well-being but also deepens your connection with the natural world. Engage in this perfect family activity in the comfort of your own garden and home.
Benefits Of Outdoor Yoga
1. Replenishes energy reserves
When you spend time outdoors, your brain receives signals that your body is back in its natural environment. According to a study published in the International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health, spending time in a place with abundant greenery, for example, enhances feelings of strength and vitality. This becomes pure fuel for your dynamic Vinyasa flow.
Being in a natural environment stimulates the production of white blood cells, which in turn strengthens your immune system. Fresh air also encourages deeper breathing, providing additional oxygen that helps your brain function better and clearer.
Researchers at the University of Southern California also found that observing beautiful landscapes releases endorphins. So, a natural environment intensifies the already positive effect of yoga on your health, vitality, and sense of happiness.
2. It challenges your practice
Whenever you modify your routine and step outside your comfort zone, you create a chance for personal growth. For instance, practicing yoga outdoors on mildly uneven ground challenges your core muscles to engage fully. Furthermore, assuming Tree poses beneath the shady foliage of an oak tree might introduce a fresh perspective on experiencing your body, mind, and spirit.
You should think for yourself what is the relationship between nature and mindfulness. There is a ton of research out there that all points to the benefits of outdoor yoga, but what is important is awareness and what is most valuable to you.
To enhance the positive effects, you need to take care of your garden. The plant identifier app will be useful for this. This app for plants can identify plants by photo. The next time you see a beautiful plant, just launch plant identification – an app for iPhone and find out all the details about it. In simple terms, the plant app will help you create a garden of plants that perfectly suit your lifestyle and at the same time create the best emotions.
3. Strengthening the effect of meditation
What is the connection between yoga and nature? Nowadays, numerous studies demonstrate that spending just 20 minutes in nature helps in reducing stress – a fundamental aspect of the meditation practice for many yogis. People in green spaces exhibit significantly lower levels of the stress hormone cortisol in their blood.
Practicing yoga outdoors sharpens your senses. You feel the gentle breeze against your skin, sense the subtle irregularities beneath your feet, and hear the rustling of leaves or the chirping of birds. It naturally enhances your mindfulness.
4. Enhances mental activity
Nature not only relaxes but also heightens our awareness. When you practice yoga outdoors, your brain remembers its natural and original environment, resetting itself to become more alert. This leads to a sense of energy and vitality, creating a balanced state where you are relaxed yet alert and energetic.
5. Improves balance
Sand, grass, or the forest floor can intensify the physical effects of a yoga pose, challenging and strengthening a yogi’s secondary muscles in the feet, hips, knees, spine, and shoulders. Practicing on uneven surfaces like sand also enhances balance, even if it initially feels distracting. Outdoor yoga sessions sharpen your focus and cultivate a magical sense of balance with each practice. Embrace the natural terrain, let it be your yoga mat, and discover a whole new level of mind-body connection.
6. Positive effect on hormone levels
If you’re stressed, you can attribute it to the stress hormone cortisol. But here’s some good news: exposing yourself to an outdoor environment instead of a concrete-clad urban one actually reduces cortisol levels. And if that hasn’t convinced you yet, consider this: research indicates that engaging in activities like meditation and yoga, which have a calming effect, actively decreases the size of your amygdala, the part of your brain responsible for the fight-or-flight response.
7. Feeling of belonging to something bigger
In Yoga, you can experience the present moment and connect with nature and the universe. Many asanas represent animals and nature. By shaping your body like a tree or a stretching cat, gracefully extending your arms like bird wings, or adapting your breath to the rhythm of the waves, you establish a connection with nature, the universe, and yourself. You become a part of something greater.
Conclusion
How can we practice mindfulness in nature? You don’t need separate yoga practices in nature or in your garden, the same movements work in a completely different way. Just start practicing yoga in the garden and you will experience a completely different feeling.
