Ever since I was a little girl, I knew I wanted to have a farm with all the animals. They are just so cute and fun to watch! Now that I’m an adult, I see things differently. I not only love all the cute little farm animals, but I love how homesteading improves your health!
I honestly didn’t expect to receive all the benefits that come with homesteading, but I’m so glad I opened myself up to the opportunities.
Homesteading changed our lives forever, and if you’re curious about the homesteading lifestyle, let me share just how homesteading improves your health so that you can decide if it is right for you.
To keep things simple, I’ve broken this into two categories:
- Mentally
- Physically
Both play a very important role in our overall health, and homesteading is a major help. At least, it is for me.
6 Ways Homesteading Improves Your Health – Mentally
When we made the decision to start a homestead, we honestly didn’t know the mental health benefits that would come with it.
From having space to run and play, caring for animals, and enjoying life in the country, the benefits are limitless.
The six I’m sharing with you are what I’ve personally noticed and experienced. I’m sure other people have great stories to share with completely different benefits.
1// Removes focus from yourself
When you have to provide for animals, nurture a garden, and consistently work on new projects, it is hard to focus on yourself.
Getting outside of your mind gives you a break from tormenting yourself with ideas that you are not good enough, you aren’t trying hard enough, or whatever your mind likes to tell you. It truly is our worst enemy at times.
By focusing on all of these other things, you are accomplishing so many great things each and every day. Doing this day in and day out provides a sense of pride that did not exist before that helps your mind reconfigure itself.
With a continuation of learning new homesteading skills and caring for your homestead, your mind starts to see all the things you are capable of doing. Then it starts to tell you how amazing it is with what all you can do.
Removing the focus from yourself can be very powerful for your self-talk.
2// Allows you to breathe fresh air
Breathing in fresh air not only purifies your lungs but also your mind.
Getting out for a walk forces you to breathe in the fresh air and explore the outdoors in ways that you can’t in a crowded city.
With reduced toxins in your system, your body can absorb the goodness surrounding you.
3// Animals tend to make you happier
If you have ever Googled cute animals or funny animal videos, odds are you were happier by the end of the video. However, there is nothing like having actual animals on your homestead to bring you joy.
The funniest animals to watch, in my opinion, are chickens! They truly explain every chicken quote, saying, or meme you come across in your day-to-day actions.
With these increased chemical releases, such as endorphin, oxytocin, serotonin, and dopamine, you become happier, and the people around you become happier as a result.
It is hard to feel anxious or stressed when so much joy is brought to you by animals.
Related Post: How to Start a Homestead: Homesteading for Beginners
4// Gardening is its own form of therapy
When you focus on cultivating a garden, many things happen. Of course, the plant grows fruit that you harvest, but you also get a decent amount of therapy as you care for these plants.
By pulling weeds, you allow yourself to work through frustrations, and by the time you finish, you feel completely refreshed. The same goes for when you are pruning plants.
The care and attention your garden needs allow you to work through your emotions rather than dismiss them. The best way to go through a rough patch is actually working through it versus working around it.
Imagine if you allow the weeds to take control of your garden. It does not take long for them to suck the nutrients your vegetables and fruits needed to grow.
The harvest will be minuscule compared to what it could be if you pulled the weeds as they grew.
5// Growth brings hope
Have you noticed the hope you feel when springtime comes, and the flowers start to bloom around you?
That is because when things grow, so does your feeling of hope. When you feel hope, it instantly improves your mental health.
It is amazing to see a tiny seed grow into a large plant and produce food. Just trying to understand it brings a feeling of wonder and excitement.
This feeling is when you really see how something so small can have a big impact on your life.
It gives you this feeling that if that little seed can do so much, then I can do at least a little of that!
6// Better diet = improved mental health
There is a lot of research that proves a better diet improves your mental health. This is why people cut out processed foods, specific fats, and other things.
While I am by no means a professional who can say, “Follow this diet for your best mental health,” I can say that growing a good portion of my own food has helped my mental stability.
When I am able to cook from my garden and the meat I have grown personally, I feel better. It is not just a state of pride in growing this food, but more so due to the quality of the food.
It is as fresh as you can get, and being in control of how the food is grown makes a big difference.
4 Ways Homesteading Improves Your Health – Physically
Did any of the mental health benefits of homesteading surprise you? I feel that most people don’t anticipate those benefits as much as they anticipate improved physical health.
The physical health improvements may or may not be obvious to you, so let’s dive into them.
1 // Purposeful exercise
I’m honestly not one who loves exercising at the gym or at all, really. However, I love gardening and caring for animals and the exercise that comes with that.
It isn’t just for me, so I have a reason to get things done. That is more motivating for me than just exercising for myself.
2 // Better diet
As mentioned above, when you grow your own food, you’re in control of how it is grown. When you consume something you’ve grown in an organic way, you’re consuming better quality foods.
You also don’t have to worry about the chemicals used on or in your food because you know for sure what you’ve put on them.
3 // Decreased processed foods in your diet
Having homegrown food also decreases the number of processed foods you would consume without growing your own food.
This reduces GMOs, herbicides, insecticides, and junk food that you would consume otherwise.
4 // More Sweating
When you spend all day tending to the garden or working on a new project, the sweat that you produce is a wonderful thing.
Sweating is actually really good for your body. It is a way for it to let go of toxins in your body, and as a result, improves your health.
Take action towards allowing homesteading to improve your health
If you’ve thought about starting a homestead, I encourage you to check out my FREE Questions to Ask Before Starting a Homestead Workbook.
It helps you think of everything you need to do BEFORE starting your homestead. This is a workbook I wish I would have had before we moved onto our homestead.
You can also access it via my FREE Resource Library, which includes workbooks, ebooks, checklists, and more to help you declutter distractions and live your best life!
Final thoughts about how homesteading improves your health
Of course, homesteading does not fix things completely, but I do believe that homesteading improves your health a lot more than you might realize.
My husband and I were walking around our property discussing future plans of expanding and building our home the other day, and all I could feel was blessed. The feeling washed over me, and the darkness that I felt before didn’t feel as dark.
I truly believe that homesteading has improved my health a good bit, and I believe it will continue to improve as I learn new skills and increase my responsibilities.
Honestly, I believe the same can be said for anyone who connects with the homesteading lifestyle, regardless of what level of homesteading it is.
Hopefully, you have gained something wonderful from today’s post that will carry over into your life. If you haven’t already, be sure to follow me on Pinterest so that you never miss an update!
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