When you get tired of your routine at the gym, you try something new, right? Maybe you switch from running to riding an exercise bike or focusing on legs to training your abs. You probably very rarely create a new form of exercise, though.

Well, that’s just what happened in Sweden, and it’s known as plogging.

What Is Plogging?

Plogging blends two words together: jogging and “plocka upp.” That’s the Swedish word for cleaning up trash. That’s plogging in a nutshell. You go on a daily run while grabbing garbage that can be recycled.

You may even incorporate extra moves into your plogging routine, like a few lunges while you grab trash or even a few pushups or sit-ups while you find a garbage can.

Photo by @gregrikaart

 

Is It Catching On?

You may be wondering, is this serious? It absolutely is, and plogging has been catching on like wildfire. It started in Sweden and has spread in Canada, the United States, and even the United Kingdom.

That’s probably because it’s so easy to do. If you already take jogs outside, you just take off those mental blinders when you see trash in your path and do something about it. Who doesn’t love saving the environment while burning calories?

Speaking of calories burned, you’re going to see an increase. If you go jogging and don’t stop unless to take breaks, you’ll run off about 235 calories in 30 minutes, says Lifesum, a fitness app. If you go plogging instead for 30 minutes, you can quickly rack up 300 burned calories.

Just check out this one Swedish user’s stats when they plogged for 65 minutes. They burned nearly 700 calories!

Photo by @start2run_app

Where to Go Plogging?

That’s another great thing about plogging: you can do it just about anywhere. If your normal running route is pretty clean (which is great), then try a park or a different neighborhood that could use some cleaning up. Bring a trash bag or several. You might want to bring some gloves if you don’t want to touch the trash with your bare hands. Then get running and see how much trash you can collect. Oh, and watch your calorie count, too. You’ll probably be impressed.

 

Photo by Scott Van Hoy on Unsplash