Gardening Provides Many Health Benefits
Gardening is a great source of exercise, not to mention nutrition, experts say.
You may not be able to tear your boss' hair out - but you can snatch the weeds from your flower beds.
You may not be able to dictate what your office looks like, but you can have flowers and trees in your yard that directly reflect your personality.
You may not have the desire to schlep to your gym's power-lift class - but you can lug bags of soil and push your wheelbarrow around. And then there's the control - all those little plant lives are in your hands.
With warmer weather here, more people are charging into their yards and gardens, or maybe thinking about it. And health experts could not be happier.
There are many benefits - both physical and mental - that come from the range of activities associated with gardening.
The most obvious benefit is exercise, says Dr. Julie Roth of the Wellness Institute at Northwestern Memorial Hospital in Chicago.
And anyone who has planted trees, created a flower bed from bare lawn, or hauled slate to design a walking path will tell you that dominating Mother Nature is hard work.
"It's going to give you a good way to burn calories that's an enjoyable activity for most people," says Dr. Roth. She adds that studies show that working in your yard or garden can burn between 250 calories and 500 calories an hour, depending on your level of activity.
Diane Relf, an expert with Virginia Tech's Department of Horticulture, says trimming shrubs or trees requires about the same amount of exertion as walking at a moderate pace.
Raking the lawn takes as much energy as a leisurely bike ride or water aerobics. And mowing the lawn with a push mower or tilling a garden can equal the exertion you would expend swimming laps, she says.
"Gardening is moderate - and sometimes strenuous - exercise that incorporates many important elements of accepted exercise regimes, such as stretching and stance, repetition, and movement," notes Relf.
"Some gardening even involves resistance principles similar to weight training," she says.
And while some people just cannot bring themselves to climb on a treadmill for an hour, it might help to know that when you "feel the burn" in your garden, you have actually produced something in the end - besides a toned body.
Beyond physical exertion, gardening also offers a level of serenity that can help a person's mental health, say experts.
"For a lot of people, it's a very soothing activity," explains Dr. Roth. "You're out in nature, which is a very soothing location. You can turn on whatever music you want. It's a good way to break away from the daily rigor we all go through."
Relf says just spending time in your garden can provide health benefits.
She notes a study from Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center that found that women recovering from breast-cancer surgery discovered that walks in the garden helped restore their ability to concentrate and reduce their depression.
"After a hard, tense day at the office, a slow cruise around the yard will do wonders to restore your perspective," says Relf. "As you discover seedlings emerging, flower buds opening, even the damage of the tomato hornworm, you forget about the day's worries."
And do not underestimate the stress relief that comes from spending time outdoors after driving your desk in an office all day.
There are several theories why time spent gardening is so soothing, notes Relf.
It might be that plants provide a simple aesthetic joy, or that people are responding to ingrained psychological and physical cues borne of thousands of years of evolution.
It also may be that caring for plants satisfies the human instinct to nurture and provide support, rewarding good gardeners with colorful and fragrant flowers or luscious, ripe fruits and vegetables.
In addition, gardening is such a healthy activity - you benefit from a diet of fresh fruits and vegetables.
Always consult your physician for more information.
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