Experts say that gardening is not only an enjoyable pastime ─ it can also be as effective as a gym workout. This popular hobby can provide a combination of physical activity as well as strength training, according to the U.S. Physical Activity Guidelines for Americans. But the best news is that working in your garden or yard is one of the physical activities with the lowest injury rates.
According to CNN, puttering in your plot can boost your mood, and participating in communal gardens that are popping up around the country can help offset social isolation, reduce stress and prevent dementia. Rishi Mandal, a San Francisco-based cofounder of the fitness coaching app Future, says that gardening engages every muscle group of the body including arms, legs, shoulders, back and abdomen. The activity also improves mobility and helps build endurance.
Digging, planting, mowing, raking and weeding burn calories, too. It is estimated that a 154-pound person burns an average of 330 calories an hour when gardening, about the same amount of calories as playing golf or dancing.
While gardening may not seem like a vigorous activity, it is still important to warm up, says Christine Zellers, an assistant professor of family and community health sciences at Rutgers University. Taking a quick walk and stretching before gardening are simple ways to prepare your body for tilling the soil.
As in any new activity, start slowly with short sessions and gradually add duration and intensity. To increase the intensity of your garden workout, bring flowers and plants in their pots to the garden one at a time. Use a push mower to mow the lawn to build muscle strength. Fill two large watering cans and carry them to the garden to water your plants instead of using a hose.
“Gardening can provide a sense of accomplishment and reward, in addition to movement, by doing something with your hands that is fulfilling, like feeding your family or making your yard look wonderful,” says Zellers.
But gardening can also provide other health benefits as well, according an article in the journal Clinical Medicine published by the Royal College of Physicians. “There is increasing evidence that exposure to plants and green space, and particularly to gardening, is beneficial to mental and physical health,” said author Dr. Richard Thompson, a past president of the Royal College of Physicians. “Health professionals should therefore encourage their patients to make use of green space and to work in gardens and should pressure local authorities to increase open spaces and the number of trees, thus also helping to counteract air pollution and climate change.”
Gardening also exposes people to more sunlight and increased levels of vitamin D in summer, says Thompson, who added that Florence Nightingale was a strong proponent of gardening for health. He said that the fruits and vegetables produced also have a positive impact on dietary health.
Thompson writes that regular moderate exercise may reduce the risk of dementia, mental health problems, cardiovascular disease, diabetes, and cancer of the breast and colon. An Australian study found that gardening was more effective than walking, education or maintaining alcohol intake at moderate levels in protecting against dementia.
“Few complementary therapies have been convincingly shown to be effective, but gardening and nature, which are alternative therapies, offer a proven, cheap and nearly universally available means to improve the nation’s health,” said Thompson.