Geocaching is often called a hobby, a game, or hide and seek for containers. These labels are all true, but after you really get into geocaching, you’ll find that those labels only scratch the surface of everything that geocaching is. For example, geocaching is also an essential part of many cachers’ wellness routines. In fact, a 2014 study from Texas A&M University found that geocachers reported fewer days of poor mental and physical health than the general public. Read on and learn how you can geocache your way to wellness.

Physical wellness
We could all benefit from more physical exercise, but the gym might be far away and sometimes it’s hard to find motivation to get moving. However, when you have a physical geocache you’re looking for, this all changes. Going on a run or taking a walk to find a few geocaches turns exercise from a chore into a game. Take this motivation to the next level by challenging yourself to see how long you can keep up a streak of geocaching every day. A geocacher on a streak racks up quite a few steps.

Mental wellness
Geocaching can be an important part of mental wellness as well as physical wellness. When things are feeling stressful or overwhelming, it often helps to recenter your mind, step away from what you’re doing, or get some fresh air. What activity achieves all those three things? You guessed it: geocaching! A geocache outing gives you a chance to go outside and it gives your mind a goal to focus on. If you go geocaching regularly, these breaks to find geocaches become a healthy habit and ensure that you are tending to your mental wellness by clearing your head and getting fresh air.