Nature’s “Green” Boosts Mood And Energy

Mind-Body-Spirit News:

Do you train clients outdoors? You may want to head for 

verdant forests and lush, grassy settings to boost 

participants’ mood and energy levels. Being exposed to the 

color green may be one reason why exercising in nature, 

also referred to as green exercise, produces physical and

 

mental rewards beyond those that come from exercise 

alone. 

Studies have shown that green exercise improves mood, 

self-esteem, enjoyment and motivation. Researchers from 

the University of Essex, in England, wanted to tease out the 

extent to which the color green, as a primitive visual 

characteristic of natural settings, contributes to these 

benefits. Fourteen subjects participated in three moderate-

intensity cycling tasks while watching videos of a rural 

cycling course out in nature. The footage in each video had 

different coloring: achromatic gray, red or the normal 

predominantly green image. At the cycling trials, scientists 

took physical measures of workload, rating of perceived 

exertion and state of mood. Data analysis showed that 

subjects experienced less mood disturbance and had a 

lower RPE while watching the natural green video. During 

the red video, subjects experienced stronger feelings of 

anger. Study authors concluded that the color green 

contributed to the benefits gained from green exercise. 

Author Dominic Micklewright, PhD, associate dean of the 

University of Essex Online in the school of biological 

sciences, said, “There is lots of evidence now that exercising 

in natural environments has positive physiological and 

psychological therapeutic effects, but what our most recent 

study has begun to explore are the cognitive mechanisms 

responsible for such effects. We are hoping that through 

further studies we will be able to gain a much better 

understanding of how people perceive and respond to 

natural environments, which will enable us to capitalize on 

the therapeutic potential that such environments offer.” 

Limitations of the study included the small sample size. 

Other research has shown that color affects psychological 

feelings. For example, exposure to red or yellow heightens 

arousal, while green and blue evoke calm and tranquility. 

This stimulating quality of certain colors may explain the 

current popularity of neon-bright training apparel. More 

research is needed regarding the cognitive mechanisms 

between color perception and mood.