Have you heard of Asheville, North Carolina? For those who don’t know, it’s a beautiful little mountain city that people are flocking to from all over the place. Why? Because it seems to have something for everyone! Gorgeous scenery (thanks to the surrounding Blue Ridge Mountains), a strong brewery presence, mild weather throughout the year and lest we forget that zen Je ne sais quoi energy about it. Keep reading to see why you should move to Asheville for your health!
Asheville has been my home off and on for 14 years. I love Asheville for ALL of the above reasons. I specifically enjoy how wellness-oriented Ashevillians tend to be! There’s something about the area that just makes you want to put on some cargo shorts and get to the closest trailhead.
Here are 5 reasons Asheville is the place to move if you want to get healthier:
1. HIKING.
There are so many great trails in the areas surrounding Asheville. With the Blue Ridge parkway running right through the city and stretching 469 miles, there are lots of trails to choose from. Just drive down the Parkway and pull off when you see a trailhead you want to explore!
Not only is hiking great exercise, but it’s also a wonderful way to explore the area. There are beautiful waterfalls, refreshing swimming holes and an abundance of wildlife to be found on our trails. Also, I can’t not mention the air quality in the Blue Ridge Mountains. Breathing in that pure mountain air is so invigorating! I can’t explain it, but it just feels so clean and pure compared to city air.
2. YOGA.
Most people I run into in Asheville take part in the yoga scene in some way. There are so many yoga studios in the area! My absolute favorite one is Asheville Community Yoga. It’s a donation based yoga studio which means you pay what you can for a class. It’s lovely for beginners and advanced yogis alike. Yoga is a spiritual practice as well as a physical one. I highly recommend you try a class, if you haven’t already.
My wife and I have also enjoyed taking our yoga mats on a trail and doing yoga in a beautiful spot! There’s nothing like meditating or doing some yoga while looking at the sun setting over the mountains.
3. FARMER’S MARKETS.
In Asheville, there are several farmer’s markets going on throughout the week each week during harvest season. Visiting the farmer’s market is an awesome way to see what kinds of delicious foods are grown in western North Carolina. Also, you get to meet the farmers who grow and produce the food! Connecting to your food in that way feels so wholesome. Way different than just picking up your food at the grocery store, not knowing or thinking about who was responsible for bringing this food into your life. Also, what’s healthier than fresh, local food? Nothing! Take advantage of our farmer’s markets so that you can eat local, nutrient-dense produce, pastured meats, fresh cheeses and eggs!
4. HOLISTIC HEALTH PRACTITIONERS.
There are many skilled holistic health practitioners who live in the Asheville area. Asheville is brimming with acupuncturists, herbalists, integrative practitioners, energy medicine workers, and massage therapists. The culture of Asheville lends itself to more “alternative” modalities for wellness. Call us “hippie dippie”, or “woo woo” or whatever term you prefer. There’s no denying that Asheville cares about supporting health holistically. This includes the trio of physical, emotional, and spiritual health.
If you want to find the best holistic health practitioner in Asheville, a great place to start is by checking out the Best Of WNC winners. The Mountain Xpress (an alternative newspaper in Asheville) has an annual competition called Best of WNC (Western North Carolina) where locals vote on who they think the best business is in each category. Check out the wellness category for the holistic health practitioners who have won this year.
4. THE ENERGY VORTEX.
Per several sources, Asheville is one of the top three energy vortexes in the United States. The other two being Sedona, Arizona and Mount Shasta, California.
What is an energy vortex? Per Namaste in Nature, an Asheville-based company that provides hiking and yoga experiences, “A vortex is a natural concentration of spiritual, electric, magnetic and electromagnetic energy.”
The company goes on to say:
Visitors to the site of a vortex report:
• Feelings of peace, harmony & tranquility
• Feeling more connected to themselves or something greater (God, Universe, Source Energy)
• Physical, mental, emotional, energetic & psychic healing
The idea of energy vortexes lies within the fields of quantum physics and spirituality. The belief is that their are energy lines on the Earth and where they intersect is an energy vortex.
Are energy vortexes based in psuedo-science? Or is it worth a trip to Asheville to see if you can feel the energetic shift yourself?
there you have it. Asheville is the place to move for all things wellness.
Y’all take good care,
P.S. Share this with a friend who is looking to move to a new city!
Corie McInnis
Corie is a functional nutritionist in Asheville, N.C. She specializes in helping her 1:1 clients with digestive discomfort, fertility struggles, skin inflammation, mood imbalances and more. She believes that a nourishing diet can support the body's innate ability to heal. She's a big fan of grass-fed butter and will not shut up about the gut microbiome.