By this point, it’s well understood that spending time in nature directly boostsphysical and mental well-being.
Gardening, therefore, is a super healthy habit.
But just how healthy is it?
Is spending an hour in your tulip bed the equivalent of spending it at the gym?
Does gardening count as a workout?
Digging, raking, and mowing areparticularly effective3at burning calories.
Digging in the dirt can even help enhance bone density as one study by theUniversity of Arkansasrevealed.
Can it help you lose weight?
In the end, gardening appeared to have a significantly positive effect on BMI reduction.
Women community gardeners weighed on average 11 pounds less than nongardeners, and men weighed 16 pounds less.
5 ways to make your gardening more vigorous.
Here are a few of his favorite ideas for making gardening more vigorous:
1.
Increase your range of motion.
This is an important technique borrowed from martial arts as well as weight training.
Learn the “lunge and weed.”
Alternate this motion if you’re left-handed.
Use large muscles whenever possible.
Always strive to engage your largest muscles (think quadriceps, buttocks, and torso) when gardening.
Remember to balance everything out.
If you want to really commit, think of gardening in terms of repetitions and sets.
Restuccio suggests grouping raking and cultivating motions first into repetitions and then sets.
For example, raking 10 to 15 sweeps briskly can be one set.
Rest or continue doing something else for a minute, then continue raking.
Bonus: Gardening can boost your mental health, too.
Papanicolaou adds that young minds can reap huge benefits as well.
