The research is pretty clear that our happiness is tied to our relationship with Nature. An outdoor living lifestyle can lead to the loss of anxiety, a boost to the immune system, and profound states of general wellness.
Human beings are meant to be connected with Nature and science backs this up. Maybe you are familiar with the practice of forest bathing, a trend that has been practiced in Japan for decades to help people feel better and live longer.
There are additional wellness benefits if you exercise in Nature, but simply practicing an outdoor lifestyle is enough. The idea is to connect to Nature with all of your senses. That said, a visual-only experience is sufficient for achieving higher levels of physical, mental, and spiritual wellness.
Outdoor Living Lifestyle Trends and Ideas
According to Forbes, redefining the boundaries between inside and outside living is one of the hottest trends nowadays. This is one of the tricks of architectural landscape design.
Movie-goers know that our pleasure centers are activated when the mind is tricked into believing what’s on the film is real. So it is too with landscape design. If the disappearing water’s edge of a reflecting pool seems to connect with that of a lake on the horizon, then it does.
What’s real to the mind is transferred to feelings that nourish the body and soul. Science backs us up on this.
Playing With Unbounded Nature
There is an unboundedness to Nature that elicits a playful response from children. Socialization teaches adults to dial back that response, but Nature has a way of finding it again when we tune in.
We are conditioned to adapt to the normal boundaries between our inside and outside environments, windows, doors, and walls. The play begins when you take one or more of those boundaries away, in whole or part.
What happens next is a surprise that wakes up the senses to the energy of the natural environment. When the original space is experienced without traditional boundaries it becomes one that is fresh and alive.
Open-air showers and outdoor media experiences are the perfect examples. They may not be possible year-round in Minnesota, but that only makes seasonal opportunities especially memorable.
Limitless Minnesota Vistas and Views
An outdoor living lifestyle is naturally a function of climate.
What happens in Miami may not be common in Minnesota, but it can be reimagined. Minnesotans can recreate an ocean vista as a lake or pool view to evoke the same feelings of tranquility.
The intersection of architecture with landscape architecture is a place where colors, patterns, shapes, material upgrades, and sightlines make everything possible.
The key is having thoughtful design intent and a plan for executing it well.
We’ve designed some of Minnesota’s most stylish and functional outdoor spaces. Let’s create an outdoor living lifestyle plan that you and your guests will enjoy for years to come.