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Why gardening is great exercise for both body and mind

Keeping active and engaged in the garden boosts your fitness and improves overall physical wellbeing. It is a natural – and cheaper – alternative to the gym

Fancy swapping weightlifting and squats for mowing the lawn and digging the soil? It’s common knowledge that taking care of the garden on a frequent basis has positive effects on the environment, and promotes mental wellbeing. But does it count as exercise for your body?

Indeed, it does. Experts suggest that gardening can serve as a substitute for the gym, offering numerous physical health benefits. The more time you spend gardening, the more likely your fitness levels are to improve.

Discover the gym outside your window

Gardening works all your major muscle groups, giving you vigorous exercise that will keep you fit
Gardening is much more than a hobby. Not only is it a key component of rehabilitation programs, such as those aiding recovery after a stroke or helping to reduce the risk of heart disease, but it can also help you to shed pounds while enjoying the benefits of being outdoors.

According to the 2019 UK Chief Medical Officers’ Physical Activity Guidelines, adults should engage in at least 150 minutes of moderate physical activity each week. The good news for gardeners is that a 2021 study by Harvard Medical School found that 30 minutes of gardening can burn a comparable number of calories to a variety of sports. Depending on your weight, gardening can burn between 135 and 189 calories, which is on par with other moderate exercises like walking, cycling or yoga. You’ll be pleased to know that gardening is as intense as calisthenics – a form of strength training that uses a person's body weight and requires little or no equipment – and even more demanding than badminton or volleyball at a non-competitive level.

Gardening every day has the same positive impact on wellbeing as undertaking regular, vigorous exercise like cycling or running

Dr Lauriane Chalmin-Pui, former RHS Wellbeing Fellow
In 2021, a groundbreaking study conducted by the RHS in collaboration with the University of Sheffield and the University of Virginia added to a mountain of evidence supporting the health benefits of gardening. Besides demonstrating that regular gardening reduces perceived stress levels, the study also revealed that frequent gardening is linked to greater physical activity. This means that individuals who garden daily are usually more active than those who garden less regularly, as also shown by another survey co-led in 2020 by Alistair Griffiths, RHS Director of Science.

Dr Lauriane Chalmin-Pui, former RHS Wellbeing Fellow and lead author of the research, says: “Gardening every day has the same positive impact on wellbeing as undertaking regular, vigorous exercise like cycling or running. Nevertheless, it is like effortless exercise because it doesn’t feel as strenuous as going to the gym. ”

Get fit in the garden by doing good

A group of GoodGymers helping the Ashdown Crescent - Sheltered Housing in Camden, London
The concept of gardening as an effortless exercise that merges fitness, sustainability and volunteer work is at the core of GoodGym’s mission. GoodGym is a UK-based community of people who get fit by doing good. Founded in 2009 and registered as a charity since 2015, it operates from its headquarters in London and covers 60 urban areas across England and Wales.

GoodGymers – the group’s volunteers – run, walk and cycle, but also garden to help local community organisations and isolated older people by doing practical tasks. Maintaining and growing green spaces is one of the environmental missions outlined in the charity’s statement. “We aim to do 384 ‘green’ tasks per month, and we’ve done approximately 2,500 so far in 2024,” says Caitlin Rollison, the Chair of the Environmental Working Group. “All of our gardening tasks count as ‘green’ tasks, but so do other environmental activities like litter picking, wildlife surveys or supporting active travel projects.”

For GoodGym, gardening is a proper sport

Caitlin Rollison, Chair of GoodGym's Environmental Working Group
Every week, gardening jobs are done in support of community gardens, parks, city farms, schools, national movements and elderly or disabled individuals with limited mobility who need some assistance in maintaining their gardens. The activities are constantly changing: one day, GoodGymers might be shovelling compost, and the next, you could find them building woodland paths using fallen branches.

“Planting, weeding, removing dead trees, moving building material from one part of the garden to another, carrying crushed concrete – pretty much any gardening task you can think of, we would have done it,” says Caitlin. “For GoodGym, gardening is a proper sport. Those who really want to work out might be shovelling or digging, while others who prefer gentler exercises or are recovering from injuries may be weeding. There are options for everyone.”

Enjoy the benefits of effortless exercise

Besides the direct physical benefits of gardening, growing your own fruits and vegetables can encourage a more varied and healthy diet
The most immediate physical benefit of gardening comes from walking around the garden, which keeps you moving. Beyond that, various activities help maintain flexibility and build muscle strength. By stretching, bending, lifting, pulling and pushing, you engage all the major muscle groups: arms, legs, abdominals, shoulders, buttocks, neck and back. Reaching for weeds or branches, bending to plant or extending a rake involves stretching. While raking and mowing are particularly calorie-intense, more delicate tasks like sowing seeds help improve fine motor skills and maintain dexterity.

“Gardening is strength, cardio and conditioning all in one – it's a full-body workout,” says Anastasia Hancock, who has been volunteering with GoodGym for eight years. “But when you are gardening, you don’t really notice what your muscles are doing. It’s not like lifting weights or being on a treadmill, where all you are thinking is, ‘this hurts’ or ‘this is boring’. Yet, after every session, you can definitely feel the workout. Gardening is a good way to exercise and keep active without spending money on a gym.”

Gardening is a good way to exercise and keep active without spending money on a gym

Anastasia Hancock, GoodGym volunteer for eight years
Anastasia still vividly remembers the time she and her GoodGym teammates had to carry several tons of compost up to Doddington and Rollo Community Roof Garden. “We had to haul hundreds and hundreds of 50kg bags up two staircases, and the next day our arms and legs were aching. However, when you are out in a garden, you are focused on what it will become in the future. Gardening is a great way to connect with your community and bring the best out of your body, no matter what you are looking for. It’s a fantastic exercise for both mind and body.”

Enjoyable, rewarding and healthy – gardening can be accessible to everybody, regardless of mobility level. So unpack your bag and switch off your fitness tracker. It's time to discover the gym just outside your window.

A note on gardening as a form of exercise

The RHS recommends that you consult a doctor before undertaking exercise if you have health issues. Like all other sports, gardening can also cause injuries when exercises are not done correctly. 

Find out the best way to avoid strain while gardening >

About the author - Marica Flore

RHS Editorial Assistant Marica is a cross-platform journalist and urban gardener who combines her love of nature with her passion for writing. She is interested in discovering stories about how gardening can make the world a more inclusive and sustainable place. 
 
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The Royal Horticultural Society is the UK’s leading gardening charity. We aim to enrich everyone’s life through plants, and make the UK a greener and more beautiful place.