The planet is plogging for the betterment of our environment. While some people think there’s not much one person can do, I believe the opposite. Growing up in England and Wales, a grocery chain called Tesco had the slogan Every little helps.” I like to apply that to cleaning up our environment and improving our health. Every positive step we take is a step in the right direction, and it all makes a difference.
Plogging is a hugely popular fitness trend right now that started in Sweden before booming worldwide, including in India, the U.K., and here in the U.S. For those who can’t go plogging or want to choose other alternatives, here’s your guide to the best plogging alternatives. You can still enhance your fitness while cleaning and tidying up your local towns, cities, and parks with these alternatives.
What is plogging?
Plogging is a fitness trend and a type of exercise where you go jogging while you pick up trash in your surroundings. Most people wear gloves or carry hand sanitizer and trash bags. You can go plogging solo or invite friends, family, or co-workers.
This interesting trend began in Stockholm, Sweden, in 2016, and it’s been gaining traction ever since. Even the Prime Minister of India got into plogging and shared a video of himself scouring the local beaches to pick up plastic litter and water bottles. Plogging also provides the benefits of an aerobic workout, such as improving your heart health and endurance.
What are the downsides of plogging?
There really aren’t major disadvantages of plogging, but it’s not ideal for everyone. For example, the repetitive bending might worsen back strain and pain for some people.
Potential for muscular imbalances
Researchers have explored the “ergonomic risk” and conducted a postural and physiological assessment of the plogging activity. They pointed out that while plogging is an environmentally friendly workout that does burn more calories than jogging alone, it also involves carrying a bag of litter on one side. Walking or jogging with a weight on one side can lead to muscular imbalances and altered gait patterns over time. Uneven weight distribution can lead to one side of your body becoming stronger and more dominant while the other can also become weaker.
In this study, the participants collected litter in four different postures: stoop, semi squat, full squat, and lunge. Researchers reported that the full squat and lunge posture was associated with a lesser risk score compared to the other two postures. Poor posture can worsen low back pain and increase the risk of injuries like iliotibial band syndrome.
A strenuous activity
Plogging is considered a strenuous activity that gets your heart rate up. This type of activity might not be advisable for everyone. If you’re unsure if you should try plogging, it’s best to consult your healthcare provider.
Incorporating functional fitness
For those who are able to, incorporating more functional fitness to your plogging by lunging or squatting to pick up the trash can help lower these risks of muscular imbalances and improve your plogging experience. It’s also a good idea to level up your strength and work different muscle groups with a range of targeted exercises and strength training.
What are the best plogging alternatives?
Enjoy doing your part with these plogging alternatives. Go solo or bring friends and family.
Plalking
The Collins Dictionary defines plalking as “picking up litter whilst walking,” which is exactly what it is. It’s another excellent way to help clean up your neighborhood and city streets, and it’s the more accessible, slower-paced cousin or sibling of the original plogging. You’ll get the benefits of walking with the added bonus of nicer surroundings.
Researchers have discovered that as little as two minutes of walking around the block provides health advantages, including improving your blood sugar and insulin levels. You can always throw in some bodyweight exercises and stretches to boost your flexibility and overall fitness. If you can’t bend over to pick up the litter from the ground, you can also try a trash grabber tool, otherwise known as a waste picker. Don’t forget comfortable shoes.
Pliking
The word pliking can be used to describe hiking or biking while picking up litter. Odgen City officials in Utah share the big difference pliking can make to your health and your city. It’s a chance to get out in nature, breathe the fresh air, and explore beautiful hiking trails.
If going cycling is more your style, you can try incorporating pliking by stopping on your route to pick up trash. Dedicated plikers who are avid cyclists equip their bicycles with bins for trash and recyclables.
Pladdling
Pladdling involves going paddling or enjoying water activities while collecting litter from the water and shorelines. For example, when you’re using a paddleboard, kayak, or canoe, you can help clean up your local waterways, lakes, and springs. Of course, you can probably only pick up a smaller number of items due to the weight and space available and because you might not want to tip overboard in some instances.
I’m always disheartened to see garbage items strewn across my local springs. As I always say, every little helps, especially with plastic pollution, which takes anywhere from 20 to 500 years to decompose and get smaller. When someone discards that plastic straw, we know that it doesn’t just disappear and dissolve into thin air.
Strawkling
Strawkling is swimming, diving, or surfing while collecting plastic waste from the water. You can dive headfirst into an activity that helps the earth. Strawkling is believed to be the original idea of a group of Australian swimmers, surfers, and divers who incorporated the words straws and snorkeling. It’s not exclusive to straws, and the goal is to pick up whatever you see and whatever you can. After all, the ocean is where we source some of our food, like fish and oysters.
Harriet Spark is the head of Operation Straw in Australia, and she’s one of the many inspiring people who’s been taking action to improve our oceans. Operation Straw is a beach cleanup project designed to tackle the amount of plastic straws found in Manly Cove in New South Wales, Australia. Volunteers worked to clean up the beach while divers went underwater to help preserve and improve the home of the ocean wildlife. At the point of the video, Harriet Spark shared that her team had already collected over 2,000 straws.
Research has also shown that manta rays in certain areas can ingest as much as 137 pieces of plastic an hour, exposing their population to serious unknown health risks.
Beach cleanups and organized community events
Gather your local community, or just head out to your nearest beach to start cleaning up. You could also try volunteering for a specific environmental organization. Either way, beaches are some of the most refreshing natural places on Earth, and we want to keep it that way.
Plus, you can reward yourself when you’re done by relaxing under the sunlight and feeling the ocean breeze. Why not clean up before sunset and stay to watch the sun slowly drop down to the horizon, painting the sky a pink and amber hue? I love the beach, and I’d love it even more if we could all help to lower the amount of pollution in our oceans and on the soft sand.
Park cleanups
You can be more active in your community by participating in a park cleanup project or just heading out to the park for a little while. Parks also have benches where you can sit if needed, or if you’re feeling more active and you’re able to, you can start a round of jumping jacks and then try some bench dips.
Our nearby parks are where we’re meant to enjoy nature, picnics, company, and the outdoors. Parks are places for community, fitness, recreational activities, and for children to play. Together, we can make our parks more attractive, inviting, and eco-friendly, one plastic water bottle, straw, or paper receipt at a time.
