Gardening is a great way to reconnect with Mother Nature in a hands-on way – growing delicious vegetables for the kitchen or tending to beautiful flowerbeds. But did you know that it also has tangible benefits for your fitness and wellbeing?
In this great infographic from WhatShed.co.uk, we’re shown how gardening can give your body a good workout. In fact, 3 hours of moderate gardening is equivalent to the calories burned by 1 full hour working out in the gym. Some of the best gardening activities for keeping fit are moving compost and digging holes for transplanting – turning a compost pile for 15 minutes can burn over 100 calories in one go! By swapping your remote control for a shovel, you can reduce the risk of a heart attack or stroke by as much as 27%, and premature death by 30%.
And it’ll help you get closer to that beach body. Research has shown that gardening helps you battle fat and stay at a healthy weight by reducing the risk of obesity by 62% in men and 46% in women. A 2013 study by the University of Utah – and published in the American Journal of Public Health – showed that allotment gardens reduced the BMI of gardeners. The results showed that male gardeners had a BMI score 2.36 points lower than non-gardeners, and female gardeners were 1.84 points lower.
And of course, there’s the healthy diet. People who grow more fruit and vegetables eat more fruit and vegetables, getting all of those key vitamins from their 5 a day. For some number crunching, women gardeners eat 123g of vegetables and 86g for fruit day, compared to 99g and 67g for a non-gardener. So is it any wonder that 75% of gardeners feel like they’re in fantastic shape – rating their health as very ‘very good’ or excellent’?
For more on why gardening is great for your wellbeing, be sure to check out the rest of the infographic here.
Why Gardening Is Good For Your Health [Infographic] by the team at WhatShed.co.uk
