Body & beauty

Do good whilst working out

Could your workout be serving a higher purpose? We explore the transformative power of alt gyms

August. that magical month when the long summer holidays stretch ahead. Roads quieten, towns empty and people take to woodlands, beaches and hilltops in search of adventure and the freedom of movement in fresh air. We know summer was a busy time for our ancestors, who often worked the land cutting hay, harvesting crops and clearing the verdant growth that snakes up fences and between paths at this time of year. Simple physical work kept muscles strong, hearts healthy and communities bonded in a way that those of us working alone at desks might envy.

But this summer, working groups will once again be out in green spaces, clearing, digging, planting and weeding to fix some very 21st century issues, as well as their communities. A wave of people-powered projects are linking the environmental benefits of physical work to the massive wellbeing wins to be had by volunteering, and the outcomes are inspiring.

Five ways to wellbeing

Best known among them is perhaps the Green Gym programme from community charity The Conservation Volunteers (TCV). The premise is simple: free outdoor sessions channel volunteers’ energies and efforts into really productive activities. After a brief warm up, teams get stuck into tree planting, weeding, path clearing or pond building in communal spaces – youth clubs, parks, schools, churchyards or community centres. Last year TCV worked with more than 67,000 people to transform more than a thousand green spaces around the UK.

Importantly Green Gyms focus on the holistic wellbeing of volunteers. “We try to structure things around the New Economic Foundation’s five ways to wellbeing,” says Freya Young, a TCV team leader for health and wellbeing based in Leeds, where the programme is funded by the NHS. “That means helping people to connect with each other and nature; be active; take notice of their surroundings; learn new skills, and give back. Essentially it’s getting people outside and making a positive difference to their local community and environment.” Some attending will have been prescribed the activity by a health worker, and certainly inclusivity is high on the agenda. Anyone can go along and find activities to suit their own abilities that allow them to work alongside others.

Feeding your soul

At this point you might be thinking ‘I have my own weeds and broken fence panels to focus on’. Well yes, but that’s not quite how our brains’ reward centres work. Our needs for social engagement, a sense of purpose, physical activity and time in green space can be hard to meet simultaneously, but alternative gyms can help. “I’m no gardener, never have been,” says dedicated volunteer Jeanette Wilson, “but you feel as if you’re helping someone else, and it’s funny how you don’t mind doing it for another person when you wouldn’t for yourself!” Jeanette’s been volunteering with her local Green Gym in Ayrshire since her husband’s death changed everything. After 28 years living on their rural farm she moved back into town with her sister, and found the loneliness debilitating. “It was a total shock,” she says. “Although in a town you’re surrounded by people I was lonelier here than I had been in the middle of nowhere. It was a totally different way of life, and I kept thinking ‘Why did this happen to me?’. I could quite easily have just stayed in my bed.”

Fortunately, a TCV walking group led Jeanette to Green Gyms, and she hasn’t looked back. “As far as I’m concerned it’s good for my soul,” she explains after a session clearing weeds in a local churchyard. “It’s physical but you’re not exercising,” she insists. “You definitely get a workout though; today was constant bending; working the thigh muscles. I do a lot of walking but it’s different muscles. Digging, planting…it’s all different. And we have a good laugh! I enjoy it. We have a chat and a sing song. Today I was there for three hours. For all of us that’s three hours when your mind isn’t on your worries: the cost of living or how much it costs to put petrol in your car. For three hours you have a good time and make a difference.”

“That side of it is what keeps people coming and gives that additional benefit,” says Freya. “It’s doing the gardening but then sitting down for a tea break with others, engaging with people you’re with. Some volunteers come with support needs, others help them get the most out of the sessions. They’re just lovely groups to be part of.” And here’s the hidden benefit: as volunteers have fun in green space they get a real workout. Volunteers burn more than a third more calories than the average aerobics class, according to TCV.

At GoodGym, a parallel charity pairing enthusiastic volunteers with worthy projects, volunteers begin and end their sessions with a run from and back to a central hub. Activities here can include lifting and carrying cans and packets to restock food banks, delivering leaflets, clearing choked watercourses or litter picking. According to research by Harvard these activities can burn more energy than equivalent time spent practising yoga, playing badminton, lifting weights or fast walking.

These pro-social, environmentally-friendly schemes are really on to something. Studies into the benefits of Green Gyms show participants report higher levels of wellbeing and lower levels of stress, anxiety and depression than average citizens. Meanwhile research suggests volunteering is significantly predictive of better mental and physical health.

So, if you have a summer of action planned, consider channeling your exertions more wisely to benefit everyone. The results could be really quite stunning.

Discover your tribe

This way to find community and fitness in uplifting green spaces

Green Gyms

A focus on green spaces brings an added mood boost to these volunteering sessions for all abilities (tvc.org.uk).

Cost: Free

Coverage: Find Green Gyms in Northern Ireland, southern parts of Scotland as well as central and southern England.

GoodGym

Always bookended by a run, walk or cycle to the activity, GoodGyms sessions are as diverse as visiting isolated older people or stewarding community events (goodgym.org).

Cost: Voluntary contributions from £11 per month.

Coverage: Restricted to England, with activities in Cardiff too.

Conservation charities

Regions without alt-gym coverage still have plenty of active volunteering opportunities in green spaces. From the Council for the Protection of Rural England (CPRE.org. uk) to The Wildlife Trusts (wildlifetrusts.org).

Cost: Free

Coverage: Find regional projects in every corner of the British Isles.