The Yardwork Workout

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By Christian Millman

The best workouts don’t always happen inside a gym. “Yardwork is actually a great way to spruce yourself up as well as your yard,” says Liz Neporent, author of numerous fitness books including Fitness for Dummies and The Ultimate Body: 10 Perfect Workouts for Women.

In fact, studies published by the Cooper Institute, an exercise research facility with offices in Dallas and Denver, show that “lifestyle activities” can be as effective as a gym-based routine for keeping fit. And many people enjoy it more.

To help make fitness fun, we’ve created an easy-to-maintain schedule of activities to get the whole family going without being overworked. Our routine keeps everyone from tiring out too soon, helps avoid strain injuries, and adds some fun to yardwork.

Aerobics Stage
Your lawn is like a leafy, green aerobics class. Raking burns about 340 calories an hour, pushing a gas mower slightly less. If you want an even higher calorie burn, kick up the intensity. “If I did it leisurely, it would take about 40 minutes to mow my lawn,” says Linda Miranda, a research technician at the Gatorade Sports Science Institute in Chicago. “If I want a real workout, I try to set a goal of 30 minutes.” The same works for raking.

If you own a leaf blower or a riding mower, keep them tucked away. Instead, haul out the rake and the push mower, and take care of your lawn the old-fashioned way.

Strength-Building Stage
It’s time for the heavy lifting now that your muscles are warm. Fetch the ladder and start scrubbing the outside of the windows or cleaning the gutters. This burns about 150 calories every half hour. Throw in some strength training for your legs by climbing or descending the ladder slowly, says Andréa Dunn, Ph.D., a behavioral science researcher at the Cooper Institute’s Denver office. You also can do a few standing push-ups against the ladder when you reach the bottom.

Once you’re on terra firma, do the rest of the heavy work. Till the garden (100 calories every 10–20 minutes), stack firewood (the same), and power-wash the decks (100 calories every 20–30 minutes). Move lawn furniture to storage. Lug the bags of leaves to the curb.

Take frequent breaks during this stage, Dunn says, and drink plenty of water. “Your muscles need water to work properly,” she says. This is also a good time to get the kids involved. They can tote the wheelbarrow, hand you fresh rags, and jump in the leaf piles.

Cooldown Stage
Leave all the pleasant, easy tasks for the cooldown stage. You can trim weeds and bushes, tidy the garage, and put finishing touches on the house or yard. Do a few light stretches to keep your muscles from stiffening. And take comfort in the fact that you just moved considerably closer to your fitness goals. “It really works,” Neporent says. “I lost 15 pounds in the last year and it literally took nothing extra to do it.”