How a daily walk can help improve your teen’s mood (and yours!)

What if there was a way to improve you and your teen’s mood, reduce chances of heart disease and cancer, and create a meaningful connection with them, all at the same time?

Good news, there is! And it’s as simple as taking a walk.

The Walking Cure

It seems so obvious that walking is healthy, but maybe that’s why we take it for granted. As a culture, we have become more and more sedentary. Currently around 25-35% of Americans do not exercise on any type of regular basis.

This level of inactivity has implications for our physical health but also for our mental health.

More than a mood booster

When I'm hanging around the house with my 2 and 4 year old there are times when they become very cranky. If I see them start to fight or get upset over small things I know it's time to get out of the house.

There's something about being inside that increases tension over time and something about going outside that relieves that tension. In Japan a study of time spent in a forest setting found that people who simply looked at forest scenery for at least 20 minutes had a 13.4 percent lower rate of cortisol, which is a common stress hormone.

One reason for this may be linked to our limbic system AKA the “fight or flight” part of our brain. When we can see further we feel safe because we can see there’s no danger in our vicinity.

For hundreds of thousands of years our ancestors were looking out onto the landscape, trying to spot a predator or oncoming storm that would threaten them. If you’re inside, your limbic system creates anxiety because you can’t tell if a lion might be stalking you just outside!

Walking can benefit your mental and physical health, but it can also be a way to connect with your teen

So often we separate our goals into different types of activities. Working, going to the gym, and then spending time with our family.

As a parent I know that there’s often not enough time in the day to work, connect with your kids, and take care of yourself. What if you combined these activities together. Taking a walk with your teen can give both of you a mood boost, health benefits, and build a meaningful connection in the process.

Helpful Tip: If you’re met with resistance, try saying “Let's just go around the block”

Barriers to getting outside

If walking is so good for us, why don’t we do it more?

I think one reason is that we get tricked into the idea of energy conservation. We’re all exhausted from a long day at work and all the millions of other tasks that are thrown our way each day as a parent (and as a teen as well).

We think that if we’re tired we need to rest and just “veg” out. But what happens is that television (including video games, phones & computers) is actually very mentally stimulating. It also does not allow for any release of the stress chemicals adrenaline or cortisol that have built up in our bodies throughout the day.

So we think we’re relaxing, but we are actually preventing true relaxation. It’s kind of a paradox that moving our bodies actually promotes more relaxation, so we understandably avoid it at times.

We must change our mindsets from thinking getting outside and moving is something that drains us to being something that invigorates us!

I am working on this myself, with my family, and with my clients.

Maybe today is a good day to take a walk. Just around the block.

Would you like help finding other strategies to support your teen or your family?

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