Sure, going on a hike is great exercise. Every step brings you closer to your healthiest body. But did you know, hiking confers brain benefits? What’s more, if you do it right, hiking is magic for your mind. If you’re feeling scattered and your mind is drifting without direction, a properly curated hike can lead you to the right mental path. The color of your hike (green, blue, or red) determines whether your mind is laser-focused, receptive and at ease, or imaginative. But beware… the brain benefits evaporate if the sound isn’t right.
Hiking and your brain
There’s ample evidence regarding the benefits hiking delivers to the magnificent machinery between your ears. Walking represents the base rhythm, which was programmed into your ancestors’ brains during the millions of years they spent wandering, foraging for sustenance as nomadic bands of hunter-gatherers. Getting your body gently bouncing along will make your brain receptive to the natural world around you.
If you’re going to walk, your brain would appreciate pristine surroundings. Researchers from Stanford University, California, recruited sixty participants to take a fifty-minute walk. In the 2014 study, they randomly assigned the participants to stroll through a natural or urban setting. The scientists assessed the participants, before and after the walk, on their emotional state and on how well they could perform tasks requiring short-term memory. They reported that those who walked in nature experienced fewer negative feelings, such as anxiety, and more positive emotions when compared to the urban walkers. Time spent in the great outdoors also improved performance on memory tasks. The volunteers underwent functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) scans to look at brain activity. The nature walkers demonstrated increased activity in the anterior cingulate cortex (part of the brain responsible for integrating executive functions, such as decision making, and emotion).
Hiking and your mind
The benefits of hiking transcend the three-pound biological machine housed within your skull. If performed properly, hiking also unleashes a burst of magic from your intangible mind. But not just any old walk in the woods will do the trick. Different colors prime your mind to perform better on specific types of tasks. Researchers have utilized fMRI to elucidate color-dependent functional connectivity patterns and brain networks. So, if you really want the benefits to accrue, you need to set the stage properly by choosing color, sound, and time.
Green hike
If you’ve been working on a difficult task and you just haven’t been able to stop your mind from wandering, taking time out for a hike in the midst of greenery may be just what you need to help focus your attention.
A green-dominated hike is easily accessible: be it in a nearby park or along the Appalachian Trail. The color reflecting from that myriad of glorious leaves globally increases the functional connectivity (strengthening the circuitry between neurons, nerve cells) in the left hemisphere of your brain. The left side of the brain dominates language and memory functions in the vast majority of people. What’s more, many consider the left side of the brain more logically oriented, while the right side houses creativity.
Stimulation by the color green also activates a specific brain circuit called the dorsal attention network (DAN). The DAN connects a region of the frontal lobe (part of the brain responsible for executive functions, such as decision making) with the frontal eye field (part of the brain responsible for awareness and attention to visual stimuli), the intraparietal sulcus (a part of the brain involved with abstract thought, such as mathematics, and determining the intentions of other people), and the visual cortex (part of the brain responsible for sight).
The DAN is responsible for keeping your attention focused on relevant objects, situations, or goals. Functional connectivity within the DAN may be weakened or disrupted in a number of ways: for example, acute stress exposure and insomnia may wreak havoc within the DAN. A restorative green hike may get the DAN, and mental focus, back on track.
Blue hike
If you’re feeling nervous, stressed out, or scatterbrained, a blue hike may be just what the doctor ordered. Some of the finest places to get an eyeful of blue are experienced by trekking beside the ocean or a vast, pristine lake.
Scientists have determined a splash of color blue fires up the salience network (SN) of the brain. The SN links the front part of the insular cortex (part of the brain responsible for sensory processing, self-awareness, and emotional guidance of social behavior) to the front part of the cingulate cortex.
The SN has been related to the detection and integration of emotional and sensory stimuli. In plain English, the SN makes sure every little bit of information or stimuli that comes into your life doesn’t drive you bonkers. The SN, like the DAN, also provides for enhanced attention to the environment. Additionally, the SN may super-charge your memory. So, get out there for a hike in the great blue yonder and you’ll be buffing up your SN, the proper function of which reduces anxiety and stress, and delivers a high-octane productivity boost.
Red hike
If you’re feeling in a funk and your imagination has flown the coop, you may be able to get your creative juices flowing with a red hike. It’s harder to organize a red hike than blue or green. You might get lucky with a crimson sunset or sunrise. Otherwise, plan a hike through a blooming garden, the Dutch countryside in springtime (tulips are magnificent), or a field of cherry blossoms in season.
Exposure to the color red increases functional connectivity throughout the default mode network (DMN). The DMN is a wide network of far-flung neuronal nodes in the neocortex, wired together by white matter (axonal) cables. The main nodes of the DMN are centered in the medial prefrontal cortex (a part of the brain that is involved with decision making and memory consolidation), the posterior cingulate cortex, the parietal lobes (part of the brain that integrates various types of sensory information), and the hippocampus (the part of the brain that forms memories).
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The DMN is active in the background of your consciousness and is crucial for inner thoughts such as reminiscing and daydreaming. The DMN fires up the cortical areas associated with memory recall or mind-wandering. It becomes especially active when you think about others. When you plan for future events, the DMN constructs an image of the thing or event (a trip to the beach) and helps weigh the pros and cons of your intended course of action.
So if you’re searching for a “‘Eureka!”‘ moment, a burst of artistry, or a breath of inspiration, you may need to get your DMN back on track. You may find your muse walking by your side along your red hike.
Marc Arginteanu is a neurosurgeon and author of Azazel’s Public House.
