Taking exercise in the natural environment has significant benefits for mental health, according to a study by the Peninsula College of Medicine and Dentistry.
A survey involving control trials with 833 adults compared the effects of outdoor exercise initiatives with those achieved during indoor workouts.
In most cases, the trialists showed an improvement in mental well-being during exercise sessions outdoors - when compared with results when exercising indoors.
The report suggests that there is a link between exercising in natural environments and a greater feeling of revitalisation, increased energy and positive engagement, together with decreases in tension, confusion, anger and depression.
Participants also reported greater enjoyment and satisfaction with outdoor activity and stated that they were more likely to repeat the activity at a later date.
Professor Michael Depledge, the senior author of the study, said: "Some 75 per cent of the European population now live in urban environments, so that increasing efforts need to be made to re-connect people with nature.
"Our research, which brings together data from a wide variety of sources, adds significant weight to the case for spending more time in the natural environment as members of the public and their clinicians fight to counteract the negative outcomes of modern living, such as obesity and depression."
