Years ago I’d meet up with a friend in our local park so our dogs could play off leash while we walked or ran a few miles. On this particular morning, I’d lost sight of my Lucy until I saw her fluffy red tail wagging with delight and her head down eating something by a swing. I ran to her knowing whatever it was couldn’t be good and to my complete disgust, I’m talking gagging here, I found her furiously licking the inside of a dirty baby diaper. I guess you could say this was the start of my “plogging”.
Plogging is the mash up term for “plocka upp” or as we say, picking up… in this case, trash, while jogging in Sweden. It’s trending in Europe too and slowly, very slowly, catching on here in the States.
It’s not a new concept by any means. If you live in a city or near a busy street, you’ve probably been plogging forever, but now it’s trendy, so we can all do it without feeling… well… weird about it, right?
We’ve all stepped over gross garbage on our running paths or our city sidewalks. I get how easy it is to run or walk past it.
Carrying someone’s discarded plastic bottle or nasty cigarette butt around till ya find a trash can isn’t easy, but now that it’s turning into a trendy activity, maybe bringing a bag along on a jog isn’t such a bad idea.
It seems stopping to pick up trash has its health benefits too.
“According to data from the fitness app Lifesum, one hour of plogging burns 288 calories on average compared to 235 calories on average for plain old jogging, with the added benefit that participants are simultaneously cleaning up their local communities. The jogging part gives ya those short bursts of energy similar to an HIIT workout and the squatting part is great for core and upper thigh strengthening.”
Knowing we can burn calories and clean up our planet at the same time is motivation enough for me. After reading multiple stories about how good we can feel physically AND mentally, I think plogging will be the perfect activity for Earth Day and beyond.
I foresee organized 5K plogging events and mass groups trekking up urban avenues in Chicago, New York and LA stopping in empty lots or city parks to pick up trash before racing to the finish line. It’d be a great way to clean up the neighborhood, especially in urban areas where it’s needed most.
So get out there! Grab a trash bag, maybe a set of old garden gloves and start plogging.
It doesn’t have to be a big deal either. You can bring a bag along on your daily walk with your dog. Just do yourself a favor and keep that pup away from those nasty diapers ’cause trust me, that image will haunt you forever.
RIP my sweet Lucy… and in case you’re wondering… the diaper wasn’t the cause of her demise. Lucy lived a long, happy 15 years and she probably ate a whole lot worse in her time.
– Germaine Caprio, Company Owner & Designer
#CAREWHATYOUWEAR while plogging!
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What are your favorite places to plog?
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