The Daily G.I.F.T. from The GratiDude

In other words when you replay that film in your head and look for the meaningful moments in the highlights and the positives, especially very few of those if any will be found from a sedentary position or from a comfort zone like sitting on your couch or just chilling and the experience arrives to you like a drone delivery.

It doesn’t work that way.

It could be something like a person you met at the beginning of a friendship or even a romantic relationship that begins with a flirt or a conversation or a serendipitous interaction at a business. But it’s something and it’s you being out in the world and not being stuck in your head in a future thought That creates anxiety or a past thought that fuels regret.

These meaningful moments happen when you are tapped into the moment of now connected to your breath and aware of what’s going on around you.

Yes, connecting with nature can be beneficial for heart health. Studies suggest that spending time in green and blue spaces, like parks and lakes, can reduce the risk of heart disease and improve overall cardiovascular health. These benefits can include lower blood pressure, heart rate, and stress hormone levels.

Here’s how connecting with nature can improve heart health:

Reduce stress and anxiety:

Studies show that being in nature can help lower cortisol levels, which is a stress hormone.

Lower blood pressure and heart rate:

Exposure to nature can lead to a decrease in both systolic and diastolic blood pressure, as well as heart rate.

Improved heart rate variability:

Green spaces have been linked to improved heart rate variability, which is a measure of the time between each heartbeat and can indicate heart health.

Reduced risk of heart disease:

Some research suggests that living near green spaces can lower the risk of developing coronary artery calcification (CAC), an early sign of heart disease.

Increased physical activity:

Spending time in nature may encourage more physical activity, which is beneficial for heart health.

Specific examples of how nature connects to heart health:

A study by Northwestern Medicine found that Black individuals with higher accessibility to rivers had a lower risk of CAC.

The University of California – Davis Health notes that being in nature can reduce cortisol levels, muscle tension, and demands on the cardiovascular system.

The Cardiology Advisor reports that green spaces are linked to lower salivary cortisol levels and reductions in heart rate, diastolic blood pressure, and type 2 diabetes.

Yesterday I walked on Lido Beach for the first time in six months since the last batch of hurricanes. The beach needed cleanup and by the time the beach was cleaned up it was season and I just didn’t even want to drive out to St. Armands and deal with all that traffic and stuff. However, yesterday was an ideal morning and I had a couple of phone calls that I could do while I was walking on the beach and it was spectacular. They cleaned the beach up a great deal. It was in really good shape and being good Friday. The kids were off school and the number of kids there with their families were innumerable. It felt like and it was such a joy to see all those kids playing in the water and in the sand, and there was so much good energy. I was so happy that I motivated to go down there.

And that is only about a 10-minute drive depending on traffic!

When I saw those dolphins, it reminded me of being on the beach yesterday and how happy I was that I motivated and to also encourage all of you to make the effort to drive to those trailhead or those beaches or the lake or the golf course or anywhere you could go where you could touch a tree or maybe put your feet in the grass and just remember that you don’t go to nature And visit nature you are a part of nature and when you are interacting with nature, nature is interacting with you as well.

Our giant brains and computers that we store between our ears try to convince us that we are these observers in our experience, somehow detached from everything around us when the reality is everything around us is watching us and we are all interconnected, sharing oxygen and carbon dioxide space and grace.

Go swimming with flipper or merely sit on your back porch and take a deep breath while you look up into the sky and say thank you.

Say it again, thank you.

Mean it when you say it thank you.

It feels good, right? That’s an attitude of gratitude.

Love

and

Gratitude

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