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Forest Bathing During Pandemic

Forest Bathing during pandemic

 

Welp, I’m sure everything you’ve read lately has had something to do with coronavirus.

And here I am bringing it up again.

But I don’t feel right just starting a post right now without acknowledging it, since it’s consuming our lives right now. I can’t just ignore it.

And this widespread disturbance is more reason than ever to advocate the benefits of nature when it’s so good for everyone’s wellbeing right now!

So, that’s what I’m doing here. Because this platform is dedicated to being a source of forest bathing inspiration.

What better time than now?

 

So, let’s talk about one of the biggest benefits of forest bathing that can actually help your fight against coronavirus (well, not as much as social distancing and proper handwashing technique, but you get it…)

It’s freaking amazing for your immune system!

 

Immune Benefits of Forest Bathing

One of the most relevant benefits of forest bathing is its immune-boosting properties.

Study after study shows a boost in immune cells after visiting the woods.

I don’t know about you, but I’m doing everything I can to galvanize my immune system against sickness. And getting outside when I can is one of them.

I’ve also stocked up on my favorite herbal antiviral and am taking other vitamins and eating vitamin-C rich foods every day.

Although we all feel like we’re just sitting here waiting for the virus to either happen or pass, we can still take measure to protect ourselves.

Forest bathing does your immune system a nice favor.

It’s also helpful for reducing the anxieties you may feel around this pandemic.

 

Safe Practices for Social Distancing

Okay, so social distancing seems to be proving most effective in this pandemic. No doubt.

But, social distancing doesn’t mean you have to isolate yourself inside your house. Unless you live in a location where you’re actually not supposed to leave your house.

I don’t know about you, but that sounds rather…claustrophobic and lonely.

Yes, we have to stay 6 feet away from other people, but no one said we can’t go outside.

Nature is a safe place to counteract the stir-crazies when you’re shut in.

My family and I have found quite the relief in spending as much time outside as we can, when weather allows.

Even if it means sitting on your front stoop or propping your back on a tree in your yard, forest bathing provides welcome relief from all these days in isolation.

 

nature pandemic

 

Educational Opportunities in the Forest

If you live in the US, your kids are likely at home, doing remote learning right now.

We’re all realizing why we didn’t become teachers in the first place. (Except the actual teachers, God bless you!)

But we have to. Our kids education is in our hands right now.

And forest bathing provides a wonderful educational opportunity for your kids.

You can homeschool your kids with nature science, physical fitness, and so much more outdoors.

Here are a some ways to turn the outdoors into an educational opportunity:

  • Art:
  • Gym:
  • Science:
    • Grab some nature bits and look at them under a microscope
    • Start your garden from seed
    • Learn about the phases of a tree, and go check out all the new buds
    • Study tree rings
    • Start a nature journal
  • Math
    • Create a scavenger hunt with multiple items (5 acorns, 16 pine needles, etc)
    • Use bits of nature to practice counting
  • Music
    • Grab a bunch of recyclables and pans and start an outdoor band (or create this sweet drum set)
    • Tap out the rhythms of bird calls
    • Grab a speaker and dance outside
  • Reading/literacy
    • Do your daily reading time outside, under a tree

 

 

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A post shared by Jessica Collins (@jess_flashfit) on

Priority Re-evaluation

Right now, while we’re surrounded by our families and the pace of the world has slowed down, we’ve all been given an opportunity to reevaluate what’s most important to us.

Obviously our senses of stability have been shaken to the core (with lost jobs, economical crisis, supply shortages, and whatnot), but we’ve also come face-to-face with what matters most: our health, our families, our contributions, and our inextricable connections to the world at large.

How clearly we can all see how much we rely upon one another.

It’s important to stop and reflect on these things.

Now more than ever, I can feel the importance of honoring and protecting nature and reducing waste, among so many other things.

And now, more than ever, do we have the time and space available to do all those things we’ve been meaning to do.

Like re-painting and decluttering every room in your house…

…finger painting with the kids,

…and forest bathing.

I don’t mean to downplay the seriousness of this crisis, but we can choose to spend our time in responsible, life-enhancing ways rather than in fear.

And forest bathing happens to be one of the ways that helps me feel grounded, safe, and interconnected. It really does improve my life, even in the darkest times.

If you’re interested in shinrin-yoku but you haven’t tried it yet, I encourage you to at least try your first exercise. See what it’s all about.

Forest bathing during pandemic is one of the most healthy, productive things you can do right now.

 

 

Have you seen that post on Facebook about all the amazing ways nature has been regenerating itself as humans pull back for a little while?

  • Air pollution and smog levels have gone way down
  • The canals of Venice are crystal clear, with swans
  • Dolphins are moving closer to shore

Nature knows what to do.


There’s still beauty out there to be had! Go, take your kids on a walk through the forest today.

 

 

I’m sincerely wishing you all health, vitality, and wellbeing as we navigate this uncharted territory together.

From my roots to yours,

~Jess

Winter Forest Bathing

forest bathing winter

 

I’ve written about How to Forest Bathe in the Winter before, but I think the topic of winter forest bathing is worth revisiting again.

And again.

Every year.

And also in article form. Heh.

 

After several more winters after the first writing, I’ve come to appreciate winter forest bathing even more. And I wanted to share some new insights with you.

 

[For further reading, check out How to Forest Bathe in the Winter and A Winter Forest Bathing Exercise]

 

If you’d rather listen/watch, check out the video version here.

 

 

First, let’s talk about the setting…

 

Choosing a setting for your winter forest bathing experience

I love to visit all my normal stomping grounds for winter forest bathing. In the video above, I visit a tract of land owned by a local school that I travel quite often. I recommend choosing a setting that’s familiar to you as well, so you can see the differences among the seasons (and you don’t get lost on ungroomed trails).

The cool thing about the winter forest is that it’s barren and “see-through.” You can see clear through the forest when all the leaves and greens are gone. The stark contrast is visually stimulating and allows you to get to know your area better, through all of its phases.

Not all trees are barren though. You should be able to find a stand of evergreen trees, such as pines or cedars, that still hold their green color. Forest bathing under the pine trees is a great place to experience the living influences of the forest, even in winter.

 

forest bathing quote

 

Nature Scratch and Sniff

I’ll touch on this more in its own dedicated post, but nature Scratch and Sniff is one really potent way to use your sense of smell in the forest.

Next time your standing under the pine trees, grab a needle and dent it with your fingernail. Then, bring it up to your nose.

You get a really strong whiff of pine as the needle releases its essential oils.

I like to try this with other materials too, like bark and herbs. Try the scratch and sniff method next time you’re out forest bathing.

 

[Bottle some of that evergreen goodness for daily use with DIY pine needle body oil]

 

Now that you’ve found a place to practice shinrin-yoku, let’s talk about what that practice might look like.

 

Forest Bathing Exercises for Winter

I like to follow the following general formula when I head to the forest in the winter:

  1. Threshold exercise: transition from your daily life into the forest. Enter the forest with intention, take a stretch, and find a sit spot. Try the breath work described in the next section.
  2. Grounding: try to gain your bearings. Close your eyes and feel yourself in space, your weight, your positioning, the ground under your feet.
  3. Checking in with all five senses: concentrate on the smells, sounds, air temperature, and visuals around you.
  4. Complete a forest bathing exercise or two (see below).
  5. Exit exercise: transition from the forest back into daily life. You might take one last deep breath at the edge of the forest, step forward and exhale back into your routine.

 

Here are a few example exercises to try:

 

cencentric circle forest bathing exercise

 

Concentric Circle Exercise:

  • Use all five senses to experience your own body at its core.
  • Then, move your senses out to your immediate surroundings.
  • Then, move out a little further to 15 feet around you.
  • Then, move out again and again as far as you can see and hear.

 

 

reverse senses forest bathing exercise

Reverse Senses

After you take in the sights, sounds, smells, taste, and touch of your immediate environment, reverse your focus and try to imagine what it feels like for the forest to see, smell, hear, taste, and touch you.

For example, you may reach out and touch a tree and feel its solidity, temperature, and texture against your palm. Then, think about how your warm, smooth hand feels against the tree.

Or think about how the birds you hear experience the sounds you make. Imagine how your own warm body heats up the air around you.

Reverse Senses is a great exercise to nurture a reciprocal relationship with nature.

 

 

Breath work in the winter

I love the taste of breathing in the winter. When you inhale, you can feel the chill, minty air as it reaches the bottom of your lungs. The winter air is different, and you can literally feel it, in a visceral sense. That’s one major benefit to take advantage of in the winter.

In fact, aside from an oxygen chamber, breathing deeply in the fresh cool air is one of the best ways to oxygenate your blood. Oxygenated blood has many benefits, such as improving your immune system, helping your body self-repair, reducing stress, and improving brain function because every cell in your body needs the molecule.

 

shinrin-yoku quote

 

How to incorporate breath work into your forest bathing practice

  1. Always begin your practice with a session of deep breathing. I like to take a series of 10 breaths with my eyes closed.
  2. Use the Wring-Out Technique to warm up. Gently twist your body side to side as you loosen up your spine. Follow the movement with your breath, literally wringing out air as you twist into an exhale.
  3. Return to your breath as you practice mindfulness in the forest. Deep, full belly breaths are a foundational practice in forest bathing.
  4. Try one of these Four Forest Bathing Breathing Techniques.

 

Overcoming barriers to winter forest bathing

By far the 2 most common reasons for avoiding forest bathing in the winter are:

  1. I hate winter. It’s too cold.
  2. I don’t have the time.

To that, I say, you have a choice. ‘

You can either choose to try to enjoy winter forest bathing and make space for it or not. That’s up to you, not any external factor.

If you’re too cold, wear more layers.

I know that sounds really trite, but honestly, it’s the hard truth. The only reason why you’d be cold is if you weren’t adequately dressed. Simply add more layers.

Another trick you can use is to warm up before you start your practice. You might even choose to go forest bathing after you work out. The colder environment will feel good after a good sweat. Otherwise, you can do a few blood-pumping exercises (i.e. jumping jacks, walking lunges, etc) before you head to your sit spot to warm up.

If you say you don’t have the time, replace your words with “it’s not a priority.”

You’ve heard that saying before, right? Instead of saying you don’t have time to exercise, what you’re really saying is exercise isn’t a priority for you. Same with forest bathing. And that’s okay if it’s really not a priority for you.

While shinrin-yoku might not be for everybody, it has undeniable benefits–check out the stacks of studies–which we still need in the winter.

There really aren’t any barriers to nature bathing. Heck, you don’t even need the trees. So, if you really appreciate the break and all the psychological and physical benefits–or you just love nature, then you can make it happen.

 

Final thoughts

I really hope these new insights inspire you to give winter forest bathing a shot. The forest can give such a welcome reprieve in the winter, just as it does in the summer. And we still need that exposure to phytoncides, sunlight, and nature in general in the winter.

Would you do me a favor?

Would you get out there today, and then post a picture of your excursion in the Forest Bathing Central Facebook group? I’d love to see what winter forest bathing looks like for you.

 

From my roots to yours,

~Jess

Annual Forest Bathing Calibration

Annual forest bathing calibration

What is an annual forest bathing calibration?

An annual forest bathing calibration is an opportunity to realign with your values and your purpose, in life or just as it pertains to forest bathing.

Basically, you go to a quiet, natural landscape on a set yearly date and perform a mental audit of the year past and the year ahead. It’s kinda like an annual business review, where you analyze your progress and make adjustments for the year ahead.

I decided to start this annual forest bathing tradition on my last birthday, and thought I’d share the process with you.

My birthday falls in mid-June, so I can generally expect decent weather.

I also think birthdays or New Year’s Day are prime opportunities to recalibrate.

So, I headed to the forest with a pen, paper, and water and found a sit spot. Then, I went to work…

 

 

Watch the video here:

 

 

How to perform an annual forest bathing calibration

To perform your annual calibration, start by setting a date. Think of a day with special meaning, or that will acquire special meaning from this practice.

Decide on a date for your forest bathing calibration:

Consider what the weather may be like on your chosen day. A day in the middle of February in the northern hemisphere might be frigid. A day in April may be unpredictable. A day in June might be just right.

My birthday falls in mid-June, so I’m using that as my yearly calibration trip.

Here are some more ideas for your calibration date:

  • Your birthday
  • New Year’s day
  • Winter and/or spring solstice
  • A day with special meaning
  • The day after Independence Day or another holiday (because you usually take off)
  • Any day, really;)

Once you have your date set, it’s time to do a little planning.

 

Prepare Your Agenda

Before you head to the forest, prepare yourself with an “agenda.” Now, I use that term loosely. Your agenda could simply be to go in with one simple intention or with pages of worksheets to fill out. Find an agenda that fits your personality and aligns with this exercise.

Your agenda should relate to an annual check-in, similar to a yearly physical or an annual employee review to see where you’re at and make a plan going forward.

So, that could look like an annual review that a business might perform.

It might be a few pages in your journal exploring the past year and the year going forward.

Or, you might just head into the forest with a simple intention to discover an approach for the year ahead.

 

The four criteria below will be the basis of your agenda:

  1. Define your purpose. Decide what the purpose of your forest bathing calibration trip is. Do you want to do a deep dive into the outlook of your entire life? Do you want to assess what your year of forest bathing has taught you? Or, do you want to simply listen to see what message is waiting for you?
  2. Plot your tasks. Now that you’ve defined your purpose, decide what tasks you’ll do to fulfill your purpose and how you want this calibration to look. You might start with a meditation and a gratitude list and then move onto a yearly audit. After that, you can make goals for the year and finish up with a solitary tea ceremony.
  3. Decide how long you expect to need for your agenda. A workbook of deep-dive questions may take hours or an entire day. A simpler intention may require only an hour. Decide what you’re going to do with your time, how much you’ll allot to each task. Make sure you block this time in your schedule and make proper arrangements at home/work.
  4. Gather the materials you want to bring along with you for the process. If you want to do some journaling, bring your journal and your journal questions. If you have workbook questions you want to fill in, bring them along. You don’t need any materials, but if you want them, gather them together before you go.

 

You can find goal worksheets online, design your own, or just wing it. However, I recommend bringing a list of relevant questions to guide your calibration.

 

A few example questions for your annual calibration exercise:

*Use questions like these during your annual calibration to define your experience. You may simply “think” about them, journal through them, or use a more formal review.

Again, you can come at these questions from the perspective of your whole lifestyle or just your forest bathing experience. For example, you can make life goals for the next year or just forest bathing goals for the next year.

Past year

  1. How do I feel my appreciation for nature has grown over the past year?
  2. In what ways has the forest/nature made my life better in the last year?
  3. What would I say the “theme” for the last year was?
  4. Have I been true to my values this past year?
  5. How did I do on my goals for this past year?

Year ahead

  1. What do I want to focus on this next year?
  2. How can I bring more nature focus into my life this year?
  3. What do I want the “theme” for this upcoming year to be?
  4. What are my values and how can I honor them this year?
  5. What are my goals for this next year?

Print these questions up on some pretty paper with spare room to write.

Once you’ve planned your forest bathing calibration, the only thing left to do is to actually DO it. You can design your calibration however you’d like. Make sure it feels right to you. I’m just here to give you some ideas.

 

Sample calibration agenda:

  1. Perform a threshold exercise before entering the forest.
  2. Find a quiet sit spot, a prime place to ponder (how’s that for alliteration?)
  3. Perform a few grounding exercises (i.e. take off your shoes and put your feet in the grass, do a little mindfulness breathing, try some brain catharsis, tune in to your senses).
  4. Once you feel like you’ve gotten to a place of mindful calm, take out your journal, workbook, or questions and ponder them for awhile. Write down or just think about your answers to each. Take as long as you’d like, but try to write down what comes to mind first. Often your gut instinct is on the ball.
  5. Let your mind wander. You finally have this wide open physical and mind space to let your thoughts expand. How often do you get time like this to think things through? Let your thoughts and writing take on a stream-of-consciousness flow.
  6. Come back to where you are and ground yourself again. Take a few minutes to feel into the culmination of this exercise.
  7. Prepare a tea ceremony or exit exercise for yourself to celebrate what you accomplished and denote the end of your excursion.
  8. Return to your regularly scheduled programming.

 

Forest Bathing tear sheet

Here’s your annual forest bathing tear sheet!

 

Where to go from here

When you’re done with your calibration, adjust your sails for the intentions you’ve set. If you want to make changes in the upcoming year, make sure you implement them when you get home. Create new routines and habits that bring your goals to fruition.

Some of the best ways I’ve found to incorporate new habits is to:

  1. Track your new habits and shoot for long “streaks,” or the number of days in a row you perform your new habit. Once you’ve got a good streak going (15 days in a row), you won’t want to break it.
  2. Remind yourself of your goals every day. Either keep a daily checklist and cross your habits off as you go or journal your goals every morning to keep them top-of-mind.
  3. Incorporate them into your established routine

For example, say you decide you want to get out into nature every day. Build outdoor time into your already-established morning routine. Brush your hair while you do your grounding practice or take your morning coffee under a tree, so you don’t have to sacrifice any additional time. Over the course of several weeks, you can rewire your brain to follow this new pattern automatically.

Remember, you don’t want to watch the year pass with your goals crumpled up in the bottom of a bag somewhere. You want to show up next year completely changed.

 

 

I’d love to hear from you in the comments. Let me know how this article has inspired you to do a yearly calibration session and when you plan to do it.

Forest Bathing Quick Tip: 8 Sit Spot Seat Cover Ideas

Forest Bathing Sit Spot Cover

 

There’s nothing worse than a wet bottom when you head out to your sit spot after a rain.

Okay, there’s a LOT worse than that…but, you know, let’s just say wet sit spots can be an issue for forest bathers.

Something that might even stop you from sitting for awhile.

And I would never wish that for you…

Because sitting for awhile is tantamount for getting the most out of your forest bathing experience.

So, today I have a few sit spot seat cover ideas to help you forest bathe in comfort.

 

 


{Watch the video version}

Factors to consider

First of all, let me just preface this by saying, don’t ever feel like you need to make this any more complicated than it needs to be. Remember, forest bathing is all about…

Open forest. Insert human.

You can certainly sit right on top of a log like a real woodsy person. No need to complicate this.

However, as a practiced forest bather, I know from experience there are times when the ground is just a little too mushy to sit directly on. And if you don’t have something available to sit on, you might skip it altogether.

So, for goodness sakes, bring along a barrier to put between your jeans and a damp stump.

Just make sure you have the right option for you:

  • Think about the size of your barrier: do you want to sprawl out? Are others accompanying you?
  • Determine how much you really want to carry out into the woods.
  • Consider how wet it really is, or could be, in your sit spot. If it’s usually damp, the extra effort is worth it.
  • Your seat cover should have some level of water resistance to it such as vinyl or plastic.
  • How cushy do you want to get? If you want to lie down in the grass, you may appreciate more coverage and/or a little padding. If pretzel-legged minimalism is your style, a simple plastic bag will suffice.

So, let’s take a peek at some simple sit spot seat cover ideas you could probably find in your house today…

 

8 Forest Bathing Sit Spot Cover Ideas

  1. Plastic bag
  2. Garden kneeler
  3. Stadium seat
  4. Outdoor chair cushion
  5. Picnic blanket
  6. Vinyl/oilcloth DIY cushion
  7. Tablecloth (great for sharing or sprawling)
  8. Shower curtain

Plastic Bag

The good old plastic shopping bag. It’s the perfect sit spot cover. This is my favored choice because you can easily carry the bag in your pocket and it provides a simple dampness barrier.

Garden Kneeler

I found this super cute garden kneeler in the dollar section at Target. This is the cover I use most often at home because it’s lightweight, easy to carry, and lends a bit of a cushioned effect.

Stadium Seat

One of those padded stadium seats would be the perfect sit spot cover because they’re water resistant and padded and usually easy to carry.

Outdoor Chair Cushion

Patio chair covers are also meant to be weather resistant and make your sit spot so much more comfortable. They’re pretty easy to find in the summer, just check the lawn and garden department.

Picnic Blanket

Picnic blankets usually have a water-resistant side and a comfortable cloth side. They also offer much more surface area to sprawl out, if that’s what you prefer. Mine has a zippered pocket and a handle, so I can use it to carry whatever I need.

DIY cushion

I’m sure you creatives out there could design a cute DIY seat cushion using vinyl or oilcloth. This way, you could add whatever features are most important to you and personalize the look and amount of cushioning you want.

Tablecloth

Plastic or oilcloth tablecloths are another option that roll up even tighter than a picnic blanket but offer lots more surface area to sprawl out. You should be able to find a simple tablecloth at a dollar store.

Shower Curtain

Similar to a tablecloth, a shower curtain offers lots of room to stretch and keeps you dry. The simple dollar store versions fold down into pocket size and are perfect for single use if you don’t want to clean all the mud off after a particularly messy outing (be careful though because the single-use method isn’t eco-friendly).

Other ideas

I’m sure you can find something around the house to use as a sit spot cover. As I was looking around my house, I noticed a few more items that could be used too:

  • Foam kickboard for the pool
  • Diaper changing pad
  • Plastic sheeting
  • Deflated pool floatie
  • Small personal sled

 

Hopefully this post gives you some valuable ideas to make your next forest bathing session just a bit more pleasurable.

I’d love to hear about your creative forest bathing sit spot covers. Post them in the Facebook group and let everyone else know what you came up with in the comments. 

The Thinking Tree: Brain Catharsis in the Forest

forest bathing invitation

 

On my birthday, all I asked for was a day alone in the woods.

That’s all I really wanted.

It just felt right.

You can probably guess why.

We lead really interrupted lives. 

When I’m home alone for several days with children, for example, I start to realize just how interrupted I am.

I can’t start a project,

Read a page in a book,

Watch a Youtube video,

Start an Amazon order,

Write a blog post,

Experience a meditation…

Without being interrupted approximately 12,382 times.

Just by the kids.

That’s not even counting the ads, the outside influences, the phone, the dogs, etc.

Ultimately…

I cannot start a thought and finish it to completion.

How often are your thoughts interrupted?

 

Do you know where you can start a thought and finish it to completion?

The forest.

Or perhaps a sensory deprivation tank.

But that costs and takes more effort to organize.

Forest bathing is free and accessible.

So, to the forest I went.

 

And I did a few practices there to allow my thoughts to flow uninterrupted.

I found a sit spot off the trail in case anyone else was on the trails.

I flipped my phone to silent,

And I started a mindfulness exercise by concentrating on one leaf on a stump. I returned to that same leaf every time my thoughts started to wander.

I also focused on my breathing, taking in the minty fresh air.

After grounding myself like this, I finally did allow my mind to wander.

I also brought my journal and other writing paper in case I needed to brainstorm and wring out my soaked mind.

And it was glorious!

A novelty really.

To sit quietly and allow the forest to focus me rather than allowing my focus to be stolen from me.

 

The next time you’re in need of a mind break (and it takes some intentional focus to even notice when this is happening), find your thinking tree.

 

The Thinking Tree Exercise

  1. Find a quiet sit spot [learn about sit spots here] in the forest, a park, or your yard. Ideally away from passersby and other distractions.
  2. Take up to 10 minutes to settle in, taking deep breaths.
  3. Find a spot to focus. Could be something like the tip of a plant, a certain leaf, or a pebble. Every time your mind starts to wander, bring your attention back to your focus spot.
  4. Once you’re grounded and your mind has quieted, shift into thinking mode. Don’t force thought, just allow your mind to wander and your thoughts to focus wherever they will.
  5. Keep a notebook handy to write down any ideas you want to remember later.
  6. Just allow your thoughts and follow them wherever they lead.
  7. If something has been weighing heavily on your mind, it will probably naturally come in. Let it. Oftentimes, nature is a great place to find solutions or perspective for those problems. If a question has been bugging you lately or you need clarity on a decision, let it in. If everything is going well, let it in. Give your mind space to think about whatever it gravitates toward. Only try to steer your thought process toward the productive, not the limiting.
  8. When you feel like you’ve reached the completion of this exercise, however long that takes, close your eyes, take a few culminating breaths, and return to your normal routine.
  9. Take a moment to think about how good this exercise makes you feel, to follow thoughts without unwanted interruption.

 

Check out this Livestream where I explain the process in visual form.

 

As simple as this exercise sounds, the Thinking Tree exercise is profoundly cathartic. It’s brain catharsis. 

When you return home from this exercise, you should notice a sense of relief at allowing your brain to do its thing, uninterrupted.

You might find you’re able to concentrate better once your brain is wrung out.

You may have more patience.

You may feel a tangible sense of relief.

 

We all need those breaks from interruption.

 

Return to your thinking tree every time you need a break from over-stimulation, too much input, too much distraction, too much interruption.

 

I’d love to hear from you…come back and tell me about your experiences at The Thinking Tree.