In this In Practice Episode, Xavier shares personal stories from his experience spending time outdoors as a camp counselor in Northern Wisconsin. He shares what time in Nature has taught him and the kids at his camp.

Guest:
Xavier Meza is 19 years old, born and raised in Chicago. He didn't go to college after graduating high school while taking college classes. He became a swim coach for kids for a year, and works at a local Chicago gym. Currently, Xavier working towards entering the field of real estate, while leading summer camps in Northern Wisconsin.

To learn more about Xavier, please visit:
xavierdmeza@gmail.com

Timestamps:
3:00 – Personal Story – How Xavier found nature
5:45 – Concept – Open to being uncomfortable
7:30 – Process – What did you notice slowing down?
11:45 – Process – Slowing down and building a fire
15:30 – Concept – Learning about Camp!
17:50 – Process – Learning about the outdoors, being from the city
22:05 – Personal Story – Interesting story from traveling to canoe trip
31:00 – Impact – Natures impact on Xavier
34:45 – Idea – How to get connected to nature
39:00 – Everyday Experiences – Taking a bath out in a lake
41:00 – Personal Strategy – Exercise
44:24 – Research - Mindfulness meditation and exercise both improve sleep quality: Secondary analysis of a randomized controlled trial of community dwelling adults (Barrett et al., 2020)

Special thanks to musical artists:
Psalm Trees: https://psalmtreesbeats.bandcamp.com/
Marysia Osu: https://marysiaosu.bandcamp.com/

To provide suggestions for new topics in future episodes, visit:
present-mind.org/podcast