Best Side Effects of Taking a Hike in Costa Rica
Whether you’re looking to take a stroll beside a river, wander down an endless beach, climb to a cascading waterfall or traipse through some rugged uphill terrain to get your blood flowing, Costa Rica’s got you covered.
Around our luxurious vacation rental villas you’ll find many routes to explore on your own.
Hiking is one of the best ways to get a total-body workout, according to the National Park Service, and being in nature does wonders for our health. Hiking in Costa Rica, of course, brings these two elements together. In addition to the exercise benefits you’ll also be getting a whopping dose of nature, a true double whammy.
“Hiking is unique in that it can help patients meet guidelines for regular physical activity and concurrently tap the significant health benefits that may be attained by spending time in natural settings. ”
Hiking; A Low-Cost, Accessible Intervention to Promote Health Benefits. NIH Website
The benefits of taking a hike are seemingly endless, but we think these are the top 10 reasons to hoof it:
Builds muscle endurance:
Hiking uphill utilizes your hips, hamstrings, calves and glutes. As you trek back down, you’ll be using stabilizer muscles and toning your quadriceps. The greater the incline and the heavier your backpack, the more you’ll be able to build muscle. All levels and styles of hiking will utilize the core and build muscle endurance. If you want to build upper body strength, you’d want to get some hiking poles. If you’re carrying a backpack, you’ve just turned your standard jaunt into a weight bearing activity. And that takes us to the next benefit!
Strengthen bones:
Harvard explains that “hiking boosts bone density because it’s a weight-bearing activity. Activities that put stress on bones can nudge bone-forming cells into action. The result is stronger, denser bones.”
This applies whether you’re barefoot on the sandy beach (it’s gotta be sand though, don’t cheat and hit the souvenir section just yet) or booted up on the side of a mountain. If you carry a backpack on your excursion, then you are bearing even more weight. Bonus points!
Improves balance:
You climb over some rocks, crunch a few twigs underfoot, turn your body sideways to more safely navigate down a steep part, then hop over the line of army ants. All these maneuvers are improving your stability, proprioception and balance. According to Rehab United, “good balance requires good stability, and good stability requires good balance.” Hiking will hone both skills at once.
Boosts heart health:
For zero-incline hikers, the beach is our favorite choice. While an inclined hike will increase your heart rate, a walk at sea level is nothing to scoff at. American Hiking Org points out that, “walking is one of the lowest impact sports around. This means that while you derive all the cardiovascular benefits of other aerobic activities, you do so with a minimum of stress, strain and pounding to your body.”
Boosts your mood:
It’s no secret that people often take a walk or hike when something is on their mind. But what actually happens when you walk in nature that is particularly linked to a boost in mood? The results of this Stanford study help sort it out. After monitoring the physical effects of two walking groups; one in nature, and one in an urban environment they discovered this.
“The researchers found little difference in physiological conditions, but marked changes in the brain. Neural activity in the subgenual prefrontal cortex, a brain region active during rumination – repetitive thought focused on negative emotions – decreased among participants who walked in nature versus those who walked in an urban environment.”
Reduces stress and anxiety:
Similar to our last benefit, hiking can actually reduce anxiety. The American Hiking Org explained why. “If adrenaline, which is produced by the body to cope with real or perceived danger, isn’t released from the body, it accumulates, causing muscle tension and feelings of anxiety. Walking releases this adrenaline. Results showed immediate decreases in tension and anxiety after walking, regardless of how fast or slow the participants walked.”
Increases Creativity:
A 2012 study reported, “Here we show that four days of immersion in nature, and the corresponding disconnection from multi-media and technology, increases performance on a creativity, problem-solving task by a full 50% in a group of naive hikers. Our results demonstrate that there is a cognitive advantage to be realized if we spend time immersed in a natural setting.”
Now we don’t expect you to spend THAT much time away from the luxury villa AC, infinity pool and amazing outdoor kitchen overlooking the Pacific Ocean. So, let’s just extrapolate that four days at 50% to ½ day and hope it equates to a 6% boost! Let us know if you had any bright ideas after your journey.
Improves sensory perception:
This one is especially true on a hike in Costa Rica. You’ll be surrounded by sights, sounds and smells that are new and exciting. The lovely fragrance from the Ylang Ylang tree, the flash of a color as a pair of macaws soar overhead, and the distinctive call of a toucan on the nearby branch. Your observation skills will be sharper than ever, and the odds of spotting that silent sloth in a far off tree will be higher than ever!
Builds bonds:
Hiking is said to really strengthen bonds, especially between parents and children. It allows for bonding time and meaningful conversations away from all the screens and distractions of everyday life. It’s a great way for kids to learn from parents who are modeling healthy behaviors like getting outdoors and engaging in physical activities. Plus, it creates lasting memories you all will cherish.
Improves sleep:
Not only will you be completely tuckered out after a day outdoors, hiking has additional benefits at bedtime. The daytime sunlight will have given you a dose of Vitamin D, which helps regulate your sleep-wake cycle. Additionally, research has shown that an increase in daily active minutes can lead to higher quality sleep. Finally, your core temp will be increased from your day in the sun, even though you took care to practice safe sun habits. When you get back to your beachfront vacation home, the drop in temperature your body experiences as you relax in the AC can actually lull you to sleep.
If you weren’t already planning to explore the beautiful beaches and waterfalls in the Osa, we hope this offered up some motivation to add it to your list of vacation to-do’s.
Several of our top tours often include a small hike mixed in. The Eco-Chontales ATV tour, the Nauyaca waterfall adventure and the many trails at Hacienda Baru are a few we’ve covered before. For more professionally guided hiking tours or trails off the beaten path, check out our suggestions here:
