Patient-Friendly Explanation

Gardening is genuine exercise: an hour of digging or weeding burns roughly as many calories as a brisk walk of the same length. It also works the arms, back and legs, and being outdoors lifts mood. A few pots or a small plot is enough to start.

Clinical Definition

Horticultural tasks range from about 2.5 METs for light planting and watering to 5 or 6 METs for digging, shovelling and mowing, placing much of the work in the moderate-intensity band recommended for 150 to 300 minutes per week. Sessions are intermittent and self-paced, which suits patients with joint disease or low fitness, and regular gardening is associated with greater lean mass in older adults, lower blood pressure and better self-reported sleep.

Why It Matters

Because it pairs activity with daylight and a sense of purpose, gardening is a practical way for older adults and patients with painful joints to accumulate their weekly exercise outside a gym.