26 May Six reasons to hike in the Alps this summer
A hike in the Alps will help you break free from cabin fever this summer. Following the difficult past year we barely need an excuse to get out, but it turns out that hiking is good for you in more ways than you may think.
A hike in the Alps is good for the soul
We’re noticing a strong pull to get back to nature this summer after all the restrictions. Everyone seems to be craving activities that feel good. So why not stretch your legs, hug a tree, inhale fresh mountain air and enjoy the wind on your face as you get back in touch with the wild?
Lift your mood and your altitude
Scientists have proven that nature helps reduce stress and elevate your mood. The sights, sounds, smells, tastes and feel of nature can have a calming effect and help your mind unwind. Hiking in the Alps will literally improve your quality of sleep because sunlight helps set the body’s internal clock. Getting out in nature can even improve your memory, so there’s justification for work, too.
Feel younger in body and mind
Increasing your heart rate while working out your lungs keeps you feeling younger and stronger. Oxygenation through exercise also helps your brain and can help you think more clearly. This means working out is good for your body, mood and mind.
Boost your problem solving
Hiking in the Alps involves something many other forms of exercise don’t: complex trails and paths. This means navigating in a world that is not totally predictable. You need to negotiate slippery surfaces, snow-covered trails, overhanging branches, hidden obstacles and wild animals crossing your path. All these things require micro– and macro adjustments to your route and your plan which are all good for the brain.
Hiking neuroscience
Hiking exercises the parts of your brain designed to help you navigate through life, the retrosplenial cortex and the hippocampus, which aid in memory too. So, hiking not only helps your heart, but being flexible and needing to work around the environment by changing the plan keeps your mind sharp.
Hiking together helps bonding
How is this so? Exercising together can produce special feelings of closeness and a sense of safety. Hiking with a friend, your partner or your children, or getting together to sustain organizational culture and keep team morale high can be a lovely way to connect with each other. Free of distractions, get ready to dedicate some time to deeper conversations on the trail.
So what are we waiting for? Check out our summer suggestions and let’s get out and hike in the Alps this summer.
Warm regards from the mountains.
Danielle