How neat is that?

Enjoy reading this? Your friend might, too. You can recommend it to them by sending this link. 🙂 

This week’s Foolproof will be short and sweet. I’ve been slightly more stressed in the past couple weeks, and it’s affecting my body differently than normal. Instead of “feeling” stressed in the traditional sense (tight chest, those gross kind of butterflies in my stomach), it’s exhibiting as tiredness.

My therapist’s recommendation was simple (besides prioritizing good sleep, obvi): get outside and walk. I was a little annoyed at first because, like, am I seriously paying you to tell me to take a walk? But like always, Dr. A was right; it has helped. I was in a bad mood today and I went on a walk (and got a little iced matcha situation) and boom, relaxed & happy. ✨✨✨

But taking a walk outside isn’t only good for reducing cortisol levels and muscle tension. It helps us focus once we get back to work indoors.

A research social scientist with the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Forest Service shared an interesting study on the USDA’s website: Studies have shown that being in nature can restore and strengthen our mental capacities, increasing focus and attention.

“One experiment [asks] two groups of people to perform a mentally strenuous task, such as a math test. One group is asked to take their break in a green space, outside in a park, while the other takes their break near a busy street intersection. The results suggested that the group in the natural setting showed increased focus and higher levels of concentration than the second group.”

So stop reading this, pop on your fav podcast (I’ve really been into Scamfluencers lately) and take a hike. Or at least add a walk to the calendar today (and follow through with it!).

(Oh, and this ancient YouTube video is the reference in the subject line & title. A big, dumb throwback to high school for me lol. “You can tell that it’s an Aspen tree because of the way it is.”)

Now walk it out (this is exactly the reference you think it is). Then let me know how it went? You can find me on IG or just reply to this email. Or if you have any other questions or topic suggestions, send those, too. Getting your emails is still my favorite part of the week, so please keep them coming 🙂 

-