Boosting Wellness With Nature

Make time for an outdoor recess. Take a walk in the woods. Sit and watch the clouds float by. Dip your toes in a stream or pool. Even small amounts of exposure to the natural world can increase creativity, immunity and mood, and decrease stress and blood pressure. It simply makes us happier and healthier. And as our lives have dramatically shifted indoors, and work invades our personal space, getting outdoors has never been more important.

But just how much nature does it take to get a dose of health and wellness? Exactly 120 minutes. That’s two hours a week, according to a University of Exeter study. And if you throw in a good measure of “awe,” you’re in for added emotional benefit. Going on a 15-minute “awe walk” regularly, where you soak up nature, will give you a natural high. We understand this all too well and have always encouraged our guests to bask in nature’s restorative powers and explore the soothing wonders of Ste. Anne’s serene, 500-acre property. Strolling our trails and taking in our bountiful gardens, peaceful woodland and rolling farmland, are all certainly awe-inspiring and healing.

Unwind in our beautiful seasonal pool. Quietly soak in our expanded hydrotherapy facility – complete with a cold plunge pool with a waterfall, a warm current pool with multiple loungers, and two more hot tubs with waterfalls. Relaxing in our pools provides the best of nature’s therapeutic qualities and the perfect RX for whatever ails you. Stop and smell the flowers in the serenity of our exquisite gardens. Find inner peace in our Tranquility Garden amidst flowers and a trickling stream. Meditate and recalibrate in our Zen Garden. Bask in the benefits of aromatherapy in our Rose Garden, a one-of-a-kind field of roses that smells as beautiful as it looks.

Or simply do nothing, and still bask in the healing power of nature’s awe. Healing is not just an added benefit of being on vacation at Ste. Anne’s but rather the purpose of your visit here – time well spent, relaxing, rejuvenating, and kick starting healthy habits. Unbelievably, we spend approximately 22 hours each day confined within our four walls, living a largely sedentary lifestyle. There is no doubt that we could all use time outside of our box, to move our bodies, be pampered, and connect with nature. Nature is a salve with amazing healthful benefits, says Florence Williams, author of The Nature Fix: Why Nature Makes Us Happier, Healthier, and More Creative.

“Nature has always been a place of healing, delight, and emotional restoration – and even more so over these past two years,” says Williams. “Many years of scientific evidence is showing us what many of us already know in our hearts and minds: Being outside lifts our moods, offers a healthy reprieve from our worries, and provides necessary restorative moments of beauty, adventure, and grace.” So this summer make it a priority to escape from indoor life, those endless Zoom meetings, and the relentless bad news cycle. We know you can’t spend your whole summer here, so be sure to take small steps to get outside every day, and you’ll feel healthier and happier for it:

• Schedule a meeting with trees and fresh air every day – just like you would an important meeting in your calendar.
• Drink your morning coffee outside.
• Walk to your local coffee shop for your morning java. It boosts you and a small business.
• Take your work outside on nice days. The greenery looks great on Zoom calls.
• Take your phone meetings outside and walk while you work.
• Have your breaks or lunch outside, even in your own backyard. Eating outside is one of life’s greatest pleasures.
• Plant a garden – harvest the fruits of your labour and make it a vegetable garden.
• Get a dog and walk it.
• Trade in 15 minutes of nightly Netflix for a walk around the block.

Go outside. Go often. Breathe.