A gentle breeze ruffling your hair. The warmth of the sun kissing your cheeks. The soothing gurgle of water making its way through a rocky creek bed.
These fleeting sensory experiences offer a connection to Mother Nature you can feel, but you may not recognize the full impact of these moments on your overall well-being. The truth is, your body can reap big rewards from the time you spend outdoors, even during the winter months when you may be more accustomed to spending your days inside.
In fact, winter is a great time to focus on senior wellness in Atlanta. The moderate climate makes it easy to spend plenty of quality time soaking up nature’s benefits, giving your body and spirit a natural boost that promotes your overall well-being.
First, Some Notes About Winter and Wellness
Monitoring your health and taking steps to promote whole-body wellness is a year-round endeavor, but winter brings some special considerations.
Before digging into all of the ways Mother Nature allows you to prioritize your wellness goals in the winter, it’s a good idea to understand how you can protect yourself and your body when you plan to spend more time out and about.
For example, it’s the time of year when cold and flu bugs are more prevalent, so preventive care like flu shots and hand washing can help protect you from getting sick.
The air can also be extra dry in the winter, but without the sun’s heat, you may be less likely to notice when you’re growing thirsty. Adding more fluids to your diet and using moisturizer regularly will help ensure you stay healthy and well hydrated.
In a similar vein, wearing layers will protect your skin from the elements, like brisk wind and chilly temperatures, while promoting better circulation in your extremities.
Fortunately, with a little forethought and planning, you can make some minor adjustments so you can safely embrace everything the season has to offer and make your wellness goals a priority all year long.
How Nature Supports Your Wellness Goals
Atlanta’s moderate weather makes it easy to spend more time outdoors throughout the year than in other parts of the country. Even so, the winter months can be especially enticing in Atlanta. You can take advantage of smaller crowds during the off-season to explore popular attractions, discover how the flora and fauna change with the seasons in the community you adore, and work up a sweat on your own terms with lower relative humidity.
Practical benefits aside, your health can actually flourish when you spend more time with nature.
Physical Wellness
From a physical standpoint, nature’s powerful allure can get you up and moving before you even realize you’re increasing your exercise. Activities like gardening, birdwatching and even leisurely walks in the crisp, refreshing afternoon air contribute to your mobility, balance and strength. They also get your heart pumping, which is good for your cardiovascular health.
Other physical benefits of spending time in nature include improved immunity and stronger bones thanks to extra vitamin D exposure via the sun. You may also notice your sleep improves when you spend more time outdoors, perhaps due to aligning your circadian rhythms with the natural lighting or the soothing attributes of natural environments that put you at ease.
Mental and Emotional Wellness
There’s also a strong correlation between nature and mental health for older adults. It’s no accident that sound machines made for relaxation are filled with nature sounds; research has shown that the sights and sounds of nature can reduce stress hormones and minimize emotions like anger and fear.
On the flip side, nature can actually stimulate feel-good hormones like serotonin to boost your mood and help alleviate symptoms of depression. In a similar vein, surrounding yourself with nature can produce a meditative state, allowing you to sharpen your mental focus and cognition.
Social Wellness
Even if they don’t enter a full-fledged hibernation period, much of the animal kingdom slows down and becomes more reclusive during the colder seasons. Ironically, Mother Nature can also be the enticement you need to remain active throughout the winter. After all, even the most familiar walking trails offer new sights and sounds as the seasons evolve from one into the next. It’s the perfect reason to grab a friend and go for an afternoon walk.
Winter Activities that Give You More Time Outdoors
Now that you know more about how spending time with nature during the winter promotes so many dimensions of wellness, you may be wondering about some of the best winter activities for seniors in Atlanta. A few of our residents’ favorites include:
Walking
Taking advantage of all the wellness benefits of winter doesn’t have to be complicated; you can give your health a boost with an activity as simple as walking. Actually, depending on your goals, walking in winter may be even more beneficial than at other times of the year since your body burns more calories and fat in colder temperatures.
A walk in the cold can also nudge your immune system into higher gear and help reduce inflammation (although it’s smart to avoid prolonged exposure, which can have the opposite effect).
Walking is an easy way to offset the risk of seasonal affective disorder and boost your mood with natural exercise-driven endorphins and the sense of accomplishment that comes with doing something positive for yourself.
Birdwatching
Many bird lovers actually consider winter the ideal time for their favorite hobby. Lighter foliage and bare limbs make the birds easier to spot, but there are other reasons winter offers ideal conditions for birdwatching.
Birds tend to congregate around food and water sources more in the winter months, upping your odds for spotting a new species. That’s especially true since you’re likely to encounter some different birds in your area during winter, as compared to the species that are prevalent during other seasons.
The more peaceful pace of winter can also be an appealing backdrop for birdwatchers, since there’s less activity to startle the birds away and their songs stand out against the quiet.
Gardening
They may be more commonly associated with the growing seasons in spring and summer, but gardens make for a great destination any time of the year. You’ll find therapeutic gardens in senior living communities for that very reason: they give residents a meaningful place to visit no matter what the season may be.
Canterbury Court in Atlanta is no exception. The on-site garden and outdoor spaces are truly the jewels of the community and hot spots for resident activity all year long. The Legacy Gardens span more than 10 acres of protected wildlife sanctuary in the center of campus, making them readily accessible to all residents.
Walkways, green spaces and conversation areas all beckon residents and their guests to linger in the peaceful serenity, while an array of birds and other wildlife make the gardens their home. Other highlights of the garden include an all-season glass-enclosed greenhouse where residents can continue nurturing their green thumbs through the winter and prep seedlings for personal gardening beds outdoors when spring returns.
Creative Arts
If you thrive on creative expression, winter can be an excellent time to hone a new hobby, like photography or landscape painting. Designing wreaths, centerpieces or other crafty items with leaves, pinecones, berries and evergreen accents you find outdoors during the winter can also inspire you to spend more time outdoors.
Or you might find your calling when you settle into a cozy bench with a warm blanket tucked around you while you journal your way through the winter.
Make Wellness a Year-Round Priority
If you’re exploring ways to make wellness a greater priority in your life, it’s worth noting that your living arrangements play a significant role in your overall well-being. Numerous studies have shown that older adults who live in senior living communities enjoy an improved quality of life with better physical health and fewer hospitalizations, stronger social and emotional wellness and even a longer lifespan.
We invite you to learn more about Canterbury Court, a community offering wellness-focused independent living in Atlanta. Our professional and engaging team actively supports our residents’ physical, mental and emotional health year-round. Get in touch to plan a visit and tour the community, so you can explore the diverse amenities that put your wellness goals in reach.