The 1,000 Hours Outside Challenge

Could you spend 1,000 hours outside this year? Convinced that time spent in nature can have a profound impact on the body and the mind, Ginny Yurich created the 1,000 Hours Outside challenge.

Recently featured on NBC’s TODAY show, Yurich had three kids under the age of 3 in 2011 and spent most days struggling to keep them occupied. A friend suggested she join her in trying a concept popularized in the 1800s by British educator Charlotte Mason: Children should be outside four to six hours during “tolerable” weather days. They agreed to meet in a park with some blankets and food for the kids and see how it went.

In short, Yurich canceled all the programs her kids were involved in and instead geared their life around the weather in their hometown of Pinckney, Michigan. She and a friend started a small nature group that met two to three times a week to spend a bulk of the day outdoors. Yurich quickly noticed changes in her young kids.

“They’re happier, they’re sleeping better, they’re not getting sick … We’re all thriving,” she realized. The research backs her up.

Jason Bocarro, professor in the Department of Parks, Recreation and Tourism Management at NC State, was also interviewed by the TODAY show.

“There is great research coming out showing that when children spend time outdoors, it’s linked with a number of positive health outcomes,” said  Bocarro. There’s the fact that if you’re outside, you’re going to be more active. The more physically active you are, there’s an incredibly strong correlation between that and improved health outcomes, like reduction in stress, improved mental health and those kinds of things. For younger children, in outdoor play environments, they can test out their limits, regulate their emotions, take risks and learn from those risks.”

Bocarro pointed to recent research conducted by University of Illinois professor Frances Kuo who has studied the benefits of urban greening in reducing aggression and crime in inner cities, reducing ADHD symptoms and promoting children’s health.

See the full feature on NBC’s TODAY here.