Anyone who knows me may well consider that I am not the best authority on keeping fit. However, in the ongoing battle against an expanding waistline I am not stranger to the gym (at least before covid) and I do regular indoor rowing. However, whilst these are all good, they do see to be a bit of waste of time, after all at the end of going to the gym all you’ve done is move some weights around and put them back where you got them from and done precisely no kilometers on a static exercise machine. Yes, the machine may tell you you’ve run/cycled/rowed 10km, but the machine is still in exactly the same place if a little sweatier.
So, consider doing some useful exercise. Digging the garden, mowing the lawn, even weeding is all exercise, and when you finish you have some real results to show for all your hard work, a freshly dug garden, shorter grass, etc.
Picture – you may have heard of hot yoga, how about hot digging (in a greenhouse)!
The mega fit may scoff, but it all helps and you can mix a balance of gentle activities such as weeding, planting with vigorous sweat inducing delights such as digging. In addition, whilst some activities may be relatively gentle you do them from a long time, so you can burn as much food off as a trip to the gym.
So how do garden gym activities stack up? As a guide I’ve compiled this from several sources:
· digging and other intensive garden work 400-600 calories per hour
· weeding/planting - 350-450 calories per hour
· mowing the lawn: 250-350 calories per hour
Well, it’s all a little imprecise as the calorie burn will depend on how much effort you put in, how many tea breaks you have etc. Also, don’t expect to look up precise calorie burns from every garden activity; wheelbarrowing manure is quite a strenuous activity but I’ve not seen too many estimates for calories spent whilst doing this.
It’s not just calories, but you will see benefits to flexibility, mobility, and even core strength. Anyone who has operated an extended reach hedge trimmer will know it’s effect on the lower back and stomach muscles!
It may be worth considering, instead of going to the gym, spending an hour in the garden instead. And if you have run out of tasks, please let me know I have plenty on my to do list!!
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