Some people look forward to their yard work; others see it as a chore. If you’re more like the latter, maybe we can change your mind! What if we told you that you could swap out some gym time for time in the yard? Multi-task by burning calories doing yard work that is probably on your to-do list, anyway.
Calories Burned Doing Yard Work
Below are some common yard tasks that you’re probably already doing, along with the calories an average person (155 pounds) can burn for the task. If you weigh less, you will burn slightly fewer calories per hour, if you weigh more, you will burn slightly more calories per hour doing yard work.
| Yard Task | Calories |
| Watering Lawn | 106 |
| Lawn Mowing (riding) | 176 |
| Picking Up the Yard | 204 |
| Applying Fertilizer | 281 |
| Bagging Leaves | 281 |
| Raking Leaves | 288 |
| Pulling Weeds | 317 |
| Lawn Mowing (power) | 324 |
| Laying Sod | 340 |
| Lawn Mowing (push) | 387 |
| Spreading Grass Seed | 400 |
| Spreading Mulch | 576 |
| Digging in the Yard | 598 |
| Chopping/Splitting Wood | 774 |
Other Health Benefits of Yard Work
Working out isn’t solely about the calories burned. Similarly to your efforts at the gym, the health benefits of yard work go beyond calories, as well. Checking off yard tasks may also help you work toward similar goals that you would achieve in your gym workouts, such as:
- Get in low impact cardio
- Build strong bones and joints
- Reduce stress
- Increase flexibility
Multi-Task During Yard Work
Soak up some sun for a good source of vitamin D, while you get a workout in for the day. Grab your sunscreen and some water, and burn those calories while you check off your yard to-dos. Overall, you’ll get some good exercise, your yard will look great and, thanks to your multi-tasking, you’ve saved time to enjoy that beautiful yard you’ve worked hard on.
