Two hours per week. In one 2019 England survey of nearly 20,000 people, those reporting 120 minutes or more per week in natural environments were significantly more likely to report good health and high wellbeing – compared to people who reported no nature contact.[1] The authors call this a tentative threshold, and because the data are observational they cannot rule out that healthier people simply spend more time outdoors. Benefits peaked between 200 and 300 minutes per week, then plateaued. The dose may matter, and it doesn’t have to be large.
What happens in those two hours
The mechanism isn’t mystical. Sunlight regulates circadian timing and vitamin D synthesis. Social contact that happens outdoors – with neighbors, fellow hikers, paddling groups – tends to be less performative than indoor social settings.
One finding stands out for anyone over 40: terrain matters. In a lab treadmill study published in Frontiers in Aging Neuroscience in 2024, harder terrain increased prefrontal activity, a sign of greater cognitive demand.[2] The study did not test benefits, and it did not test walking outdoors or in nature. Uneven ground outdoors is a reasonable place to challenge your balance, but take care on rough terrain if you are older or have balance or mobility problems.
What 120 minutes actually looks like
The threshold is more accessible than it sounds. It doesn’t require a trail system or a national park:
- Two 60-minute walks per week on a route with grass, trees, or water. A neighborhood park counts. A waterfront counts.
- One longer outing. A Saturday morning hike, a paddleboarding session, or an outdoor yoga class in a park covers the whole week in one block.
- Swap an indoor workout for an outdoor one. Same duration, different surface – and outdoor terrain is more varied than a flat treadmill.
- Stack it with something you already do. Lunch outside may count, and so may a walking meeting; the survey asked about recreational visits to natural settings, so that is our assumption. In the 2019 survey, how the 120 minutes were reached (one long visit or several shorter ones) did not matter.
The harder sell: why this keeps getting deprioritized
Two hours per week sounds easy until you count how many of your default hours are indoors by design – commutes, meetings, gyms, restaurants. Getting to 120 minutes usually requires either scheduling it explicitly or building it into a routine that already exists (walking to something instead of driving, eating outside instead of at a desk).
The evidence here is a single observational survey, but tracking your outdoor time for a week is a simple experiment.
References
[1] White MP, et al. “Spending at least 120 minutes a week in nature is associated with good health and wellbeing.” Scientific Reports. 2019;9:7730. DOI: 10.1038/s41598-019-44097-3. Finding: individuals reporting ≥120 min/week in nature showed significantly greater likelihood of good health and high wellbeing; benefits peaked at 200–300 min/week. ↑︎
[2] Hwang J, et al. “Prefrontal cortical activity during uneven terrain walking in younger and older adults.” Frontiers in Aging Neuroscience. 2024;16:1389488. DOI: 10.3389/fnagi.2024.1389488. Finding: in a lab treadmill study, prefrontal activation rose with terrain unevenness, a measure of cognitive demand; benefits were not tested. ↑︎
Kurt Greiner
Kurt is a digital strategist and IT professional blending emerging technology with practical application to help businesses and individuals streamline their digital presence. His current work focuses on the intersection of intentional living and technological resilience, exploring how individuals can leverage modern tools to navigate the second half of life with purpose.
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