Why having a hobby is good for your brain and body
From playing tennis to coloring, having a hobby could help you live better, longer.
When you choose a hobby, do you consider whether it’s not only fun, but also good for you?
If not, science has you covered: In recent years, countless studies have shown that a wide range of hobbies offer physical and mental health benefits to participants.
A recent paper compiled the findings of five different surveys, all of them studying hobby engagement and mental well-being among people 65 or older. The studies tracked more than 93,000 older people across spans of four to eight years in the United States, Japan, China, and 13 European nations. In every location, participants with hobbies reported fewer symptoms of depression and greater health, happiness, and life satisfaction than participants without hobbies. The specific pastime mattered less than the engagement.
Hei Wan Mak, the study’s lead author—and a reader and puzzler in her own leisure time—says, “The benefits of hobbies are universal across different countries and different culture settings.”
Still, with so many hobbies available, research can recommend options that are especially healthy. Here are several ideas for how to use that extra hour or two to your benefit.
Move your body, your whole body
The health advantages of exercise could fill many more articles than this one. For people who make the effort to get into motion, the impacts can be profound.
One of the oldest sports, running is known to improve cardiovascular fitness. It also helps strengthen bones and muscles, control body weight, and lower the risks of cancers, among other plusses. Research shows that it boosts academic achievement in children and brain function in older adults. One study even suggests regular running can thwart depression as forcefully as taking antidepressants.
Swimming is another whole-body exercise suitable for people of all ages. Like running, swimming improves cardiovascular health, reducing the risk of heart attack or stroke. It also improves lung capacity and metabolism and calms inflammation and joint pain. Time in the water releases the hormones serotonin and dopamine in the brain, which can mitigate mood disorders and augment memory function.
From out of the pool and onto the courts, tennis is a perfect match for better health. It slims players’ risks of obesity and diabetes while expanding their flexibility, balance, and core muscle strength. Tennis players also exhibit lower levels of stress, anxiety, and depression. Published in 2018, the Copenhagen City Heart Study followed thousands of people for 25 years and found that while swimmers, joggers, cyclists, and soccer players added a few years to their life expectancies, tennis players added almost a decade.
(Learn more about why tennis is so uniquely beneficial.)
Then there’s pickleball, tennis’s younger and louder (thwack!) cousin. The U.S.’s fastest-growing sport offers much of tennis’s advantages, including the fun of playing with others. Studies show pickleball makes a difference for mental health: It reduces feelings of loneliness and increases life satisfaction.
From your garden to your kitchen table
Diet, like exercise, is fundamental to good health. Preparing meals yourself is an effective way to monitor what ends up in your body—and reap some less obvious benefits.
Gardening gives children permission to dirty their hands and, later, the chance to fill their bellies with the fruits—and veggies—of their labor. Kids who garden develop green thumbs and life skills, becoming more focused and confident. Similarly, foraging has been shown to improve children’s moods while encouraging them to eat nutritiously. These hobbies act as long-term investments, as studies link early exposure to nature to better mental health in adulthood.
(Learn more about how to garden and forage with your family.)
After harvesting fresh food, it’s time to enter the kitchen. Research shows cooking—following recipes, measuring ingredients, multitasking—reduces stress and stimulates the brain’s frontal and temporal lobes, which are associated with memory and executive function. In one scientific review, cooking at home led people to eat more fiber and protein and, among those with diabetes and cardiovascular disease, better control their weight.
The therapy of art and music
When was the last time you held a Crayon or marker?
Coloring, it turns out, isn’t just for kids. When paired with conventional therapy, coloring therapy can decrease adults’ anxiety and depression and increase positive emotions. These effects arrive quickly, too: According to one study, almost three-quarters of participants felt more confident after making art for as little as 45 minutes. Another, related study found that art-making significantly lowered participants’ levels of cortisol, a hormone linked to stress.
Playing or listening to music can also boost one’s health by releasing endorphins and dopamine.
Meanwhile, music therapy is known to improve patients’ concentration and ameliorate negative conditions like pain or fatigue. For the very young—infants—music can be formative, helping stabilize their heart and respiratory rates and their sleep patterns as well as gain weight.
The Great Outdoors are great for you
One of the best things you can do for your well-being is simply step outdoors. Temporarily escaping our homes or, for urbanites, our cities can make us healthier and happier.
In recent years, studies have explored—and National Geographic has reported on—the benefits of being among trees, near birds, and in sunshine. Nature has the power to reduce people’s risks of mental illness and improve their cognitive and memory performances. It fosters a sense of awe, which stokes creative thinking.
A growing body of research confirms what many people felt during COVID lockdowns: Time in green spaces, such as parks and forests, or blue spaces, such as coastlines and rivers, is restorative. In addition to psychological benefits, these experiences can lower blood pressure and strengthen the immune system. And when you not only visit green or blue spaces but exercise in them, the benefits may be even greater.
So, take that evening or weekend walk in the woods or around a lake. Then go home and put on some favorite music while you cook up dinner. Call it a day of healthy hobbies.
