Calories Burned During Common Gardening Activities

The following chart gives the calories burned during 30 minutes of the activity for a 180-pound person. Generally, a person who weighs more will burn more calories than the amount shown here. Likewise, a person weighing less burns fewer calories. Typical calories burned in 30 minutes of:

Sleeping 36                                                     Weeding 182
Sitting quietly 40                                            Watering lawn or garden 61
Mowing lawn (riding) 101                              Trimming shrubs (power) 142
Raking 162                                                      Bagging leaves 162
Planting seedlings 162                                    Mowing (push with motor) 182
Planting trees 182                                           Snow thrower (walking) 182
Trimming shrubs (manual) 182                       Weeding 182
Clearing land 202                                            Digging, spading, tilling 202
Laying sod 202                                               General gardening 202
Chopping wood 243                                       Gardening with heavy power tools 243
 Mowing lawn (push mower) 243                   Shoveling snow 243
Double digging 344                                        Shoveling heavy snow 364

Garden Activities Reduce Stress

Planting a beautiful garden can be a great way to relieve stress! Whether you have a small patio to decorate, or a vast amount of space to tend, the act of making your particular stretch of nature into a haven can be a stress reliever in itself, and the garden that you create can bring you even more peace.

Here's why:

Sunlight: Just getting out in the sunlight can actually improve your mood! In fact, there's a condition called Seasonal Affective Disorder that affects some people during Winter months when there is less sunlight. Sunlight also provides an influx of vitamin D, and the fresh air that that goes with it is good for your health.

In Touch With Nature: Being in touch with nature and the great outdoors can help you feel more removed from the stressors of daily life. With the amount of time we spend indoors at work or watching TV, many people feel an urge to connect with nature that goes unfulfilled. Having your piece of nature right outside your back door can help you feel some of this connection.

Creating Beauty: The beauty of nature is a great stress reliever in itself. Having your own bit of beauty available as a place for meditation, contemplation and relaxation can provide quite a bit of relief from stress. It's all part of making your home a haven from stress.