The 1000 Hours Outside Podcast

Ginny Yurich sits down with physician, resilience expert, and Your Brain on Nature author Dr. Eva Selhub to explore the remarkable ways nature influences our brains, bodies, relationships, and overall well-being. Drawing from decades of research, Dr. Selhub explains why our increasing separation from the natural world—combined with constant screens, information overload, and chronic stress—may be taking a greater toll than we realize.

They explore surprising research on everything from indoor plants and cognitive performance to texting, mental fatigue, dopamine, attention, empathy, and the accumulating effects of everyday stress. Dr. Selhub explains how nature can help restore an overwhelmed nervous system, improve our capacity to think and connect, and provide a powerful counterbalance to modern life.

Plus, hear why pets can strengthen connection, how gardening and walking support the brain, why even the aromas of trees may influence our health, and how small doses of nature woven into everyday life can make a meaningful difference.

Get Dr. Selhub's book here!

** A huge thank you to our sponsors! Check them out below:

Fora Travel: Become a Fora Advisor today at Foratravel.com/1000hours

My Green Mattress: Visit www.mygreenmattress.com and save 15% on your order during their Labor Day Sale. Plus, use code 1000hours for an additional $10 off your cart total when you purchase any mattress.

BetterHelp: Visit www.BetterHelp.com/1000HOURS today to get 10% off your first month.

Quince - Visit www.quince.com/outside and get free shipping and 365 day returns

IXL Learning - Head to www.ixl.com/1000hours to get an exclusive 20% savings on your membership

Whisker - Take care of your cats while taking an additional $50 off bundles with code 1000HOURS when you shop www.whisker.com/1000HOURS

Muzzle Sleep Tape - Go to MuzzleSleep.com and use code 1000HOURS for 10% off.

Zenni Optical- Go to www.zenni.com/podcast and use code PODCAST15 for 15% off your first order, plus free shipping on all U.S. orders over $65.

Active Skin Repair - Don’t forget to put this in your first aid kit! Visit ActiveSkinRepair.com and use the code 1000HOURS to save 20% on all Active Skin Repair products.

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What if one of the most effective parenting tools isn’t another consequence or reward, but play?

Ginny is joined by Dr. Kim Van Dusen, licensed marriage and family therapist, registered play therapist, and author of Parenting Through Play, to explore how play can transform challenging behavior, strengthen connection, and bring more peace into family life. Dr. Kim explains why play is a child’s natural language and shares simple ways parents can use it to diffuse power struggles, ease transitions, and encourage cooperation without abandoning healthy boundaries.

They also discuss the importance of decompression time, why saying “yes” more often can reduce conflict, and how parents can recognize when they’re over-parenting and give kids more opportunities to build independence and confidence. Dr. Kim offers practical strategies for helping parents regulate themselves, making mealtimes and picky eating more playful, and continuing to connect through play as children grow into tweens and teens.

This conversation is a refreshing reminder that parenting doesn’t always have to become more serious when things get difficult. Sometimes, adding a little play is exactly what changes everything.

Grab Dr. Van Dusen's book here!

Learn more abou her work here!

** A huge thank you to our sponsors! Check them out below:

Fora Travel: Become a Fora Advisor today at Foratravel.com/1000hours

My Green Mattress: Visit www.mygreenmattress.com and save 15% on your order during their Labor Day Sale. Plus, use code 1000hours for an additional $10 off your cart total when you purchase any mattress.

BetterHelp: Visit www.BetterHelp.com/1000HOURS today to get 10% off your first month.

Quince - Visit www.quince.com/outside and get free shipping and 365 day returns

IXL Learning - Head to www.ixl.com/1000hours to get an exclusive 20% savings on your membership

Whisker - Take care of your cats while taking an additional $50 off bundles with code 1000HOURS when you shop www.whisker.com/1000HOURS

Muzzle Sleep Tape - Go to MuzzleSleep.com and use code 1000HOURS for 10% off.

Zenni Optical- Go to www.zenni.com/podcast and use code PODCAST15 for 15% off your first order, plus free shipping on all U.S. orders over $65.

Active Skin Repair - Don’t forget to put this in your first aid kit! Visit ActiveSkinRepair.com and use the code 1000HOURS to save 20% on all Active Skin Repair products.

KT by Knix - Go to www.KnixTeen.com , and use code 1000HOURS for 15 percent off.

Ka’Chava - Go to https://www.kachava.com and use code 1000HOURS for 15% off your first order.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

What happens when the faith that once sustained you no longer feels big enough for the questions you’re carrying?

Ginny sits down with bestselling author Ian Morgan Cron to explore the newly re-released Chasing Francis: A Pilgrim’s Tale, a novel about a burned-out pastor whose crisis of faith sends him on an unexpected pilgrimage through Italy and into the life and teachings of St. Francis of Assisi.

Ian shares why seasons of questioning don’t necessarily signal the loss of faith—they can become invitations into something deeper, richer, and more resilient. Together, he and Ginny explore pilgrimage, the wisdom of ancient Christian traditions, the importance of listening to our bodies, and what can happen when we step outside our routines and relinquish control.

They also explore St. Francis’s profound connection to the natural world and why time outdoors can awaken wonder, restore perspective, and reconnect us with God. It’s a thoughtful conversation about embracing mystery, paying attention, and allowing our faith to grow alongside us through every season of life.

Get Ian's book here!

** A huge thank you to our sponsors! Check them out below:

Fora Travel: Become a Fora Advisor today at Foratravel.com/1000hours

My Green Mattress: Visit www.mygreenmattress.com and save 15% on your order during their Labor Day Sale. Plus, use code 1000hours for an additional $10 off your cart total when you purchase any mattress.

BetterHelp: Visit www.BetterHelp.com/1000HOURS today to get 10% off your first month.

Quince - Visit www.quince.com/outside and get free shipping and 365 day returns

IXL Learning - Head to www.ixl.com/1000hours to get an exclusive 20% savings on your membership

Whisker - Take care of your cats while taking an additional $50 off bundles with code 1000HOURS when you shop www.whisker.com/1000HOURS

Muzzle Sleep Tape - Go to MuzzleSleep.com and use code 1000HOURS for 10% off.

Zenni Optical- Go to www.zenni.com/podcast and use code PODCAST15 for 15% off your first order, plus free shipping on all U.S. orders over $65.

Active Skin Repair - Don’t forget to put this in your first aid kit! Visit ActiveSkinRepair.com and use the code 1000HOURS to save 20% on all Active Skin Repair products.

KT by Knix - Go to www.KnixTeen.com , and use code 1000HOURS for 15 percent off.

Ka’Chava - Go to https://kachava.com and use code 1000HOURS for 15% off your first order.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

What if one of the best tools for raising capable, confident kids is already sitting in your kitchen?

In this episode, Ginny talks with Jack and Emmy Zhang, founders of Cooking for Levi and authors of Weeknight Winners: Family Dinners, about how cooking alongside their five-year-old son, Levi, has become about so much more than food. What started with Jack sharing his love of cooking has grown into a family rhythm that builds connection, confidence, curiosity, language, and real-world skills.

Jack and Emmy share practical ways to involve kids in the kitchen—even when they're young or parents aren't confident cooks themselves. From pouring and stirring to choosing ingredients, exploring foods from around the world, and eventually learning more advanced skills, small opportunities to contribute can have a lasting impact. They also discuss how food naturally opens doors to sensory exploration, vocabulary, geography, culture, and meaningful family conversation.

It’s a joyful reminder that children don't always need another activity or screen to keep them occupied. Sometimes they simply need to be invited into the things we're already doing.

Grab the cookbook here!

** A huge thank you to our sponsors! Check them out below:

Fora Travel: Become a Fora Advisor today at Foratravel.com/1000hours

My Green Mattress: Visit www.mygreenmattress.com and save 15% on your order during their Labor Day Sale. Plus, use code 1000hours for an additional $10 off your cart total when you purchase any mattress.

BetterHelp: Visit www.BetterHelp.com/1000HOURS today to get 10% off your first month.

Quince - Visit www.quince.com/outside and get free shipping and 365 day returns

IXL Learning - Head to www.ixl.com/1000hours to get an exclusive 20% savings on your membership

Whisker - Take care of your cats while taking an additional $50 off bundles with code 1000HOURS when you shop www.whisker.com/1000HOURS

Muzzle Sleep Tape - Go to MuzzleSleep.com and use code 1000HOURS for 10% off.

Zenni Optical- Go to www.zenni.com/podcast and use code PODCAST15 for 15% off your first order, plus free shipping on all U.S. orders over $65.

Active Skin Repair - Don’t forget to put this in your first aid kit! Visit ActiveSkinRepair.com and use the code 1000HOURS to save 20% on all Active Skin Repair products.

KT by Knix - Go to www.KnixTeen.com , and use code 1000HOURS for 15 percent off.

Ka’Chava - Go to https://kachava.com and use code 1000HOURS for 15% off your first order.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Ginny welcomes midwife and longtime friend Beth Barbeau of Indigo Forest back for her tenth appearance to continue their conversation about birth, motherhood, and the often-overlooked postpartum season. Ginny shares the story of her third and final home birth and reflects on the different lessons each birth taught her—from realizing her body wasn’t broken, to seeing how small changes can dramatically affect outcomes, to discovering a deeper sense of confidence, surrender, and trust in herself.

The conversation then turns to what Beth calls the “fourth trimester” and why mothers and babies need far more rest, support, and protection after birth than our fast-moving culture typically allows. Beth offers practical ideas for creating a slower postpartum period, setting boundaries with visitors, accepting help, and giving the body time to recover.

Ultimately, Ginny and Beth explore a bigger question: What does birth and postpartum ask of us—and what can it give back? Their answer keeps returning to something simple but increasingly countercultural: slow down, create margin, seek support, and make space to experience one of life’s biggest transitions.

Sign up for Beth's newsletter here!

Considering Natural Birth? Register for her "Live Chat With Beth" here!

** A huge thank you to our sponsors! Check them out below:

Fora Travel: Become a Fora Advisor today at Foratravel.com/1000hours

My Green Mattress: Visit www.mygreenmattress.com and save 15% on your order during their Labor Day Sale. Plus, use code 1000hours for an additional $10 off your cart total when you purchase any mattress.

BetterHelp: Visit www.BetterHelp.com/1000HOURS today to get 10% off your first month.

Quince - Visit www.quince.com/outside and get free shipping and 365 day returns

IXL Learning - Head to www.ixl.com/1000hours to get an exclusive 20% savings on your membership

Whisker - Take care of your cats while taking an additional $50 off bundles with code 1000HOURS when you shop www.whisker.com/1000HOURS

Muzzle Sleep Tape - Go to MuzzleSleep.com and use code 1000HOURS for 10% off.

Zenni Optical- Go to www.zenni.com/podcast and use code PODCAST15 for 15% off your first order, plus free shipping on all U.S. orders over $65.

Active Skin Repair - Don’t forget to put this in your first aid kit! Visit ActiveSkinRepair.com and use the code 1000HOURS to save 20% on all Active Skin Repair products.

KT by Knix - Go to www.KnixTeen.com , and use code 1000HOURS for 15 percent off.

Ka’Chava - Go to https://kachava.com and use code 1000HOURS for 15% off your first order.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices