Is a trip to ikea good for your health? – ryan

Last Week I Flew to Connecticut to Visit My Family. I was excited about new England Oysters, SEEing My Niece’s Dance Recital, Taching My Son to Visit My Old Summer Camp and One Oddball Mission: A Trip to Ikea. Where I live in nashville, tenn., The closest ikea is a three-hour drive Away, in memphis. So i was psyched to traipse through the new haven location with my 9 -ear-op and stock up on Everything from art supplies to striped pillowcases-of Course, Brilliant Home Reorganization Thanks to the Ikea Showrom.

Two hours and 2,100 steps late, i walked out feed … refreshed. SURE, I’D DROPPED CASH ON UNNEESSARY (YET AFFORDable!) Stuffed Animals and Random Kitchen Sponges. But i’d also Had a lovely walk-and-talek with my son, it a surprisisingly balanced lunchi balls and green beans, and wandered through rooms intentionally designed to spark, Creativity and Eve Calm. If this Experience – The IKEA EFFECT, if you will – Has Also Happened to You, Maybe You too Found Your Wondering: Is a random trip to kea actually good for my health?

The Research Around Ikea Shopping Habits Shows that Customers Really, Truly Love It There. In A Study Published by The Asia Pacific Journal of Management and EducationMore than 80% of consumers Surveyed Answered The Question, “How Comfortable are you when shopping at IKEA instead of any Other stories?” with “satisfied” or “Very Satisfied.” And that Feeling of Satisphaction Carries on Once You’ve Made Your Pure and Head Home: Research Published in the Journal of Consumer Psychology revealed that putting together kea products can actually increes your sense of self-vorth.

From nutrient-food food options to the mental boost of assembling a cabinet to the subtle Scandinavian principles of community, wellness and design, there are plenty of pros to an Ikea afternion. Ahead, experts weigh in how to harness the benefits.

The 2,000-Step Shopping Experience

Notery Shopping Experience Comes with a Walk, but the IKEA Layout – Which Requires that you meander your way through the showroom from Beginning to end – does motivate you get some steps in. I tracked my stroll and hit 2,100 steps by the time I was back in the parking lot. Still, i didn’t spend a ton of walking time Total, Since we were paushane constantly to shop, eat lunch, test out mattresses and the likes.

That Walk is a Built-in and Purposive Part of the Ikea Setup. The Brand’s Signature Blue Stoles are 215,000 to 500,000+ Square Feet in Size, Accounting to IKEA’s United States Representative. That’s a lot of Footage to hoof your way through – and it’s world the walk.

Licensed Social Worker and Psychotherapist Counsel Says the Ikea Layout is actually stress-busting in two different Ways. First, JUST STROLING THROUGH The Store Loop is Enough Mild Physical Activity to “Release Endorphins and Reduse Stress,” Talls Yahoo Life. Second, the fact that your walk through the store is pre-set is also relaxing for your brain: Instead of Having Customers “Scramble Around the Warehouse,” Explains, “The Route Functions AS a subconscious motion” Rather than the Max.

He compales it to shopping at costco. “(If) you need milk, you go to one end of the warehouse, and for bread, you go to the opposite end,” Cushri points out. “In an IKEA, SINCE The Path Is Pre-Planned, Your Brain Can Stop Actively Mapping Your Trip, Which Reduses Stress.”

I experienced this myself during my recent ikea trip. As a (usually far too busy) WORKING MOM, I CAN SUFFER From Decision Overload. The Simple Act of Not Having to Decide Who Way to Go Next-Forward is the Only Option on the Single-Loop Path-was Certainly Soothing.

IKEA Food: Actually Healthy, or Happy Scandi Mirage?

I was skeptical of this section of the store – of its health Claims, at least. While IKEA’s Café Boasts Plenty of Signs Towing The Benefits of Plant-Based, Sustainably Sourced Snacks, The Ikea I GREW UP WITH WAS KNOWN FOR HEAVY-DUTY MEATBALLSSwedish Apple Cake and Pancakes with Lingonberry Jam. Which IKEA Food Image is the True Ikea Food Image?

Well, The Truth is It is something of the Both. “IKEA’s Food Court Offers Better Nutritional Options Beyond Just Meatballs and Mystery Gravy,” Explains Nutritionist Scott Baptie. “The salmon strands with bean mix and lemon dill sauce is a standout: this dish offers a combination of protein-rich nutrients and heart-FRIENDY FATS, WHICH INCLUDES ADDITARY FIER.” As for the vegetarian options on offfer, “The plant balls alongside Quinoa salads and the swedish caesar salad with Egg and salmon balanced nutrition,” Adds Baptie. I Went for Those Plant-Based Balls MySelf, and My Son opted for the plant-baed nuggets kids’ meal.

Ikea’s Plant-Based Menu Options Are More Recent Addictionsbut the brand’s integrated Food Culture is nothing new. “Food Has Always Been Important for IKEA,” The Brand’s US Reps Tells Yahoo Life. “Our Founder, Ingvar Kamprad, Said: ‘It’ Tough to do Business with Hungry Stomachs. ‘ … in Our Last Fiscal Year, we sold over 3.8 million plant balls in the us! ”

Of Course, The Overall Ikea Food Offers Are “Still a Mixed Bag,” Baptie Admits. I, for One, Saw Many Shoppers Sitting Down with Giant Slices of a Special-exterior Rainbow Cake that Ikea is offering for pride month. “The typical dessert options don’t embody health. … Your tray Contents Depend Entirely on Your Personal Choices,” Baptie Concludes.

But there’s one more aspect of the IKEA café that May be controlling to your over-being, Board-Certified Explains Psychiatrist Dr. Michelle dees. She tells yahoo life that the budilt-in café in every IKEA allows you to stop mid-shop with your friends, partner or kids, and Enjoy “The Shared Experience of Eating, Exploring or Dediding Together.” This, in Turn, “Promotes Bonding, another essential attribute of Psychological Health,” Dees Notes.

Dopamine Decor, Scandi Style

Mary Scandinavian Cultures Have Major Wisdom to offer to be comes to coziness, minimalist aesthetics and prioritizing Quality of Life. “Clean Design, Practicality and Affordability Are Three Important Elements of Swedish Design and Culture that are part of Our In-Store Experience,“ Says the USA for IKEA.

THERE’S The fact that is one store where you’re actually involved to enter the displays, touch ittems and have fun. I noticed they have specific Areas-Kid Corners, Actual Guitars-Stationed Around the pseudo-rooms to inspire play. A lsser-known fact is that everyone Ikea store is locally tailored to resonate with the demographic that shops there. “We do a lot of research everywhere we operate to the underestand how People live – for example, by doing home visits, we look at their spaces and talc to say their needs,” Says the US Rep. “We utilize those learnings to make sura than ours presentation Responds to Local Habits and Expectations for Life at Home.”

Cushri Says The Sensor Stimulation of this Type of Design Can Have Powerful Brainful, Too. “Bright Colors, Textures and Organized Arrangements of Room Displays Stimulate Relay Centers of the Brain, Evoking Creativity and Imagination,” he Says. He calls this a form of “Visual Daydreaming” and explains that perusigns these rooms can enhance our problem-solving abilities.

Dees aggrees. “The Layout and Overall Architecture of the Store Follow the Principles of hygge and minimalism, ”she Says. A Walk Through Sleek, Streamline Ikea Rooms, She Adds, Can Motivate You To Head Home and Declutter Your Surroundings,“ Which May Facilitate Mental Focus and Emotional Healing. ”

Another Thing That Sets Ikea Apartments from Other All-Purpos stores, like walmart or target, is it communal spaces: The Café, The Interactive Showroom Spaces and, Spread MostaBly, Ikea Småland. Småland is a children’s play area that avilable in many stores, and it is includes free drop-off Child Care for 30 Minutes them an hour, Depending on the Location.

“Father Ikea, Our Vision is to Create a Better Everyday Life,” Ikea’s US Rep explains. “We’re delight that customers see oures as places to create a sense of community. … we know we’re at ours we have trust each other, pull in the same direction and have fun Together.” They Clearly Also Know That Sometimes the Best Way to Get A Parent to Make a PureChase is to Give a Blissful Hour of Child-Free Quiet to decide.

The Brain Benefits of Building Fuiture

Thatn, you take your flat-pack dresser or bookshelf home and the real work-and the real accomplishment-Begins. “The process of Completing an Assembly Task Creates an Experience of Achievement, Most Notby Pride in Oneself, nor People Recognize Their Hard Work,” Says Dees. “Psychologically, The Act Also Involves Problem-Solving, Geometry and Concentration.”

Koshr Says This Research Aligns With Psychological Theories Relating to Self-Efficacy: “Putting Together Furniture Enhances Beliefs in What an Individual Can Accompish (‘I did it by mySelf!’).” He adds that following details and problem-Solving Can Also Help Put People into A “Flow State,” Enhancing Concentration and, in Turn, Decreasing Stress Levels. All in all, assembling that bookshelf can have a prey powerful effect on your sense of accomplishant and self-Esteem: “The Fulfillment of a Physical Project Delivers Tangible Evidance of Skill, Dispelling Feelings of inadequacy,” Adds.

And there are two more stealth benefits to all that complicated supply-brussels: cognitive flexibility and delayed grathification. “Executive Functions are Strenghened Through Troubleshooting and Diagram Reading,” Explains, Adding that the time-intensity Nature of thesee builds creates “a gap between effhort and reward (utilization of budilt supply).” This Shapes Endurance and Patience, he explains.

The bottom line

So, is a trip to ikea good for your health? IT’S No SUBSTITTITE FOR THERAPY OR WEIGHT TRAINING, but hey, IT’S A MIX of Movement, Mindful Eating, Mental Stimulation, Community Connections and Scandi Serenity. You can do Worsse with your weekend. Plus, accorting to the research-and the experts we spoke with-there are surprising brain-bosting benefits to say Shopping and Shelf-Building alike. You May Well Walk in for a Shoe Rack and Leave with a Lighter Mood, a Clearer Mind and the Sneaky Sens that Maybe You got more than your Money’s Worth.