Think of gardening as a way to exercise and you’ll have flowers as well as a toned physique to show for your efforts. This chart From “Garden Your Way to Health and Fitness,” by Bunny Guinness and Jacqueline Knox, estimates how many calories you’ll burn in the yard, compared with doing office work or camping on the couch. (Adapted from “Nutrition in Sport,” by R.J. Maughan.)
Activity and calories burned per hour (based on a 140-pound person)
Sitting watching television 58.5
Light office work 91
Driving fast 123.5
Carrying logs 708.5
Chopping logs with ax, fast-paced 1,098.5
Chopping logs with ax, slow-paced 325
Carrying heavy loads, e.g. large pots 507
Carrying, loading or stacking wood 325
Clearing land, hauling branches 325
Collecting grass or leaves 260
Digging, spading, filling garden 325
Gardening with heavy power tool, tilling a garden 383.5
Laying turf or crushed rock 325
Planting seedlings, bulbs, perennials and shrubs 260
Planting trees 292.5
Raking lawn 260
Spreading soil with spade 325
Trimming shrubs or trees with power trimmers 234
Trimming shrubs or trees with shears (secateurs) 292.5
Walking, applying fertilizer or seeding a lawn 156
Watering lawn or garden, standing or walking 90
Weeding 292.5
