Walking and being outdoors in nature increase positive affect and energy

Abstract

This study investigated the effect of outdoor exercise on measures of mood, energy, tiredness, and attention. One hundred eighty-one participants were randomly assigned to one of four experimental conditions: (1) indoor exercise, (2) indoor rest, (3) outdoor exercise, or (4) outdoor rest. Outdoor conditions involved exposure to actual nature, and indoor conditions involved exposure to simulated nature. We hypothesized that there would be a main effect for activity such that participants who exercised (i.e., walked) would demonstrate more favorable pretest-to-posttest changes in mood, energy, tiredness, and attention than participants who rested (i.e., sat). We also expected to find a main effect for setting such that participants whose sessions took place outdoors (i.e., in actual nature) would demonstrate more favorable pretest-to-posttest changes in mood, energy, tiredness, and attention than participants whose sessions took place indoors (i.e., in simulated nature). Lastly, we expected activity and setting to interact such that participants who exercised outdoors would demonstrate the most favorable pretest-to-posttest changes, and participants who rested indoors would demonstrate the least favorable changes. We found partial support for all three hypotheses. Under conditions of rest, the benefits of exposure to actual nature are greater than the benefits of exposure to simulated nature. Under conditions of exercise, the benefits of exposure to actual nature are less clear. Key Words: Mood - Attention - Physical activity - Actual versus simulated nature - Outdoor exercise.