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Take five to stop and breathe in the nature around you

Tom Whalley, Paths for All’s Community Paths Development Officer, encourages us to pause from counting up the steps to take in the sights and sounds of the natural world.

Published:23/05/2022

 lush green woodland with stream and path leading into the distance

With all of us managing to get out more during this Step Count Challenge it is the perfect time for us to take a few moments to enjoy the world around us and to make a connection with nature while we’re out on our walks.

While out chasing that step count goal, I know from personal experience how easy it can be to focus on the steps as the reason to be out walking, rather than what’s around me. Just this week while on a walk I was grinding out the miles when a flash of movement in my peripheral vision grabbed my attention and made me stop, it was a roe deer. I stood for a few seconds and watched it run off through the trees and I smiled at how much pleasure that brief encounter had given me. 

For the next few minutes I took the time to stay at that spot and to take in the sights and sounds of what was around me. The afternoon sunlight shining through the trees, the white clouds and blue sky above, the sound of a chiffchaff singing in the bushes and distant lambs calling to their mothers. This helped remind me that going out for a walk should be more than just for the exercise and to get the steps up, it should also be about enjoyment of the natural world around us.

Next time you’re out racking up those steps take five minutes to stop and breathe in the nature around you.

We’ve got some great resources about the benefits of nature connectedness which can be found here.