Just a walk in the park

The next time you need to study, you can literally make it a walk in the park.

While the more common places college students look for entertainment includes clubs, bars and movies, a less well-known site for some weekend fun are the Metroparks of Toledo.

The Metroparks have always been open to the public with free admission to anyone. Aside from walking through the miles of trails, there are many events and programs the parks have to offer that appeal to a broader audience.

The free program guide, which is released quarterly by the parks system, outlines events such as bike tours around the trails, photography contests or exhibits run by the National Center for Nature Photography at the Secor Metropark and trips through time, such as the historical Manor House at the Wildwood Preserve, all of which are completely free.

The parks also hold opportunities for students looking for volunteer hours in their area, like the project with the "Helping Hands Team" on Dec. 4 or through "Volunteer Naturalist Training" happening Friday and Saturday.

From the wide open spaces to relax and read a book to the deep woods filled with unique plants, animals and extensive hiking trails, it is hard to imagine someone couldn't be entertained with the 10,500 acres of beautiful scenery the parks have to offer.

What if visiting the trails could improve test scores and overall cognition? This is the idea behind Ecopsychology.

Ecopsychology is a belief that human beings feel more comfortable and inspired while being outside, such as in the parks -- not just while running or skating the trails for exercise, but by simply being out of noisy city environments and in the quieter, more serene wildlife landscape.

"Generally exercise is good for you," said UT Professor of Psychology Stephen Christman. "But we need regular exposure to being outside due to our past."

Christman described a study at the University of Michigan in which a group of volunteers were asked to memorize a set of numbers and then repeat those numbers back in reverse order. However, the difference was that some of the group had taken a stroll through downtown Ann Arbor that day while the other half walked through UM's Arboretum.

"The nature group performed significantly better," he said.

The results are thought to show that, while humans can drown out the sounds of the city after a while, they are less attentive. But when they were out in the arboretum, the subjects were more engaged with what was around them because "it is unpredictable and requires our voluntary attention at all times," Christman said.

He also explained another psychological treatment called ecotherapy, where therapists take their patients out-of-doors to help them to feel calm and less stressed.

"It provides innumerable benefits because we need that regular exposure to nature," he said.

So when college students need something new to do, or simply need to relax, they should visit the Metroparks of Toledo, where everything is constantly changing and there is something for everyone to enjoy. Plus, it is always free to get in. Students might even improve their test scores or lower their anxiety levels before their next big exam thanks to the healing power of nature.