These 7 Gardening Jobs Count as Your 10,000 Steps – and They Transform Your Yard at the Same Time

You don’t need to be especially active to have heard of the oft-quoted target of 10,000 steps per day. While it’s a somewhat arbitrary figure – originally created as part of a Japanese marketing campaign in the build-up to the 1964 Tokyo Olympics – it's a good benchmark to aim for and has become the default daily activity goal for millions of people.

If you have a fairly sedentary lifestyle, aiming for 10,000 steps can make a big difference to your health and wellbeing. But what if you could achieve similar benefits without leaving your yard – keeping fit by getting on with the gardening jobs that need doing anyway? If you wear a fitness tracker or smartwatch while gardening (the Xiaomi Mi Smart Band on Amazon is a great budget-friendly choice if you're curious), you may be surprised at just how quickly those steps and active minutes add up – without ever feeling like you’ve done a workout.

Gardening is a surprisingly effective way to stay fit and active, with plenty of additional mental health benefits. However, it can be difficult to quantify exactly how it contributes to your fitness goals. Many common gardening tasks burn as many calories as brisk walking, meaning they can be counted as step equivalents. The key is to compare the average calories burned over the same amount of time.

If maths isn’t your strong suit, we’ve done the calculations for you*. Here are some common gardening jobs that won’t just replace walking time, but will also leave you with a beautiful outdoor space that enriches your life in countless ways.

1. Digging and Turning Soil

Digging and turning soil – and working compost into garden beds – is one of the most physically demanding jobs you can do in the yard. It requires constant movement: stepping, lifting, bending, and shifting your weight, all of which raise your heart rate quickly.

Using an ergonomic garden fork or spade – with a longer shaft or angled handle – like the popular Fiskars Ergonomic Fork, available on Amazon, can make digging far easier on your back, allowing you to work for longer without strain.

This vigorous task can burn similar calories to a fast walk or jog, making it even better for cardiovascular health than a leisurely stroll. An hour spent preparing beds can easily replace most of your daily step target, while also improving overall fitness.

From a gardening perspective, digging helps improve soil structure and drainage, particularly in compacted ground, leading to healthier roots and stronger plants.

10,000 steps equivalent:
An hour of moderate digging burns roughly the same energy as walking 8,500–9,000 steps, while vigorous digging can exceed 13,000 step equivalents.

2. Weeding Beds and Borders

Weeding may seem slow-paced, but covering a large area involves plenty of movement and works your legs, glutes, back, shoulders, arms, and core. Walking along rows, squatting, pulling, digging, and standing keep your body active throughout. A padded kneeling aid or kneeler with handles, like Walmart's best-selling Alljoy Foldable Garden Kneeler Seat, can make a big difference here, reducing pressure on your knees while still letting you move easily from plant to plant.

Weeds are relentless and can appear almost year-round – so you might as well turn that frustration into a fitness opportunity. Regular weeding reduces competition for your plants and keeps your garden looking its best.

10,000 steps equivalent:
An hour spent hand-weeding or cultivating at a steady pace uses similar energy to walking around 6,000–7,500 steps.

3. Mowing the Lawn

Mowing the lawn with a push mower is one of the closest gardening equivalents to brisk walking. It keeps you moving continuously at a steady pace while engaging your upper body at the same time. Even using a power mower still provides a solid workout.

A larger lawn can easily push you past the halfway mark to 10,000 steps in a single session. While a traditional push mower, like this best-selling American Lawn Mower Company model on Amazon, requires more effort than a powered one, it’s excellent for fitness and far more eco-friendly.

10,000 steps equivalent:
Walking behind a power mower for an hour is roughly equivalent to 8,500 steps, while using a push mower can reach 10,000-plus step equivalents.

4. Watering by Hand

Hand-watering is gentler gardening work, but it can still contribute meaningfully to your step count thanks to all the walking between beds. Lifting watering cans and constantly adjusting your position adds further exertion.

A well-balanced, beautifully designed watering can, like the Haws designs available at Terrain, isn’t just a pleasure to use – it also makes lifting and pouring feel easier, encouraging you to water by hand more often.

The process also promotes mindfulness – you’re far more likely to notice pests, dry patches, or stressed plants when watering manually. It’s also better for the environment, targeting water only where it’s needed and reducing waste.

10,000 steps equivalent:
An hour of hand-watering equates to about 2,500–3,000 steps in energy terms.

5. Planting and Replanting

Planting involves more movement than you might expect, including digging, carrying compost, and repeated bending and standing. Because it happens in bursts of activity, it can rival a brisk walk for calorie burn.

10,000 steps equivalent:
An hour of planting – including digging holes and moving between beds – provides similar benefits to walking 7,000–7,500 steps.

6. Mulching Beds and Borders

Mulching is a full-body workout thanks to carrying bags, pushing wheelbarrows, digging, spreading, and bending. All that exertion adds up quickly, making it one of the most effective step-equivalent jobs in the garden.

Your plants benefit too, with improved soil health, better moisture retention, temperature regulation, and fewer weeds.

10,000 steps equivalent:
Spreading mulch for an hour typically matches the exertion of walking 8,500–9,500 steps, depending on load and pace.

7. Pruning and Trimming

Pruning and tidying plants involves plenty of movement from plant to plant, along with bending, stretching, and reaching. While less intense than digging, it’s easy to work up a sweat and contribute meaningfully to your daily activity.

Telescopic pruners, like Fiskars 2-in-1 Extendable Tree Pruner and Pole Saw, allow you to reach higher branches without overstretching or climbing ladders, turning pruning into a safer, more fluid movement that still gets your body working.

Regular pruning also promotes healthier growth and more flowers. Late winter is the ideal time to prune many plants, helping you – and your garden – get in shape for spring.

10,000 steps equivalent:
An hour of pruning and general garden tidying is equivalent to roughly 6,500–7,000 steps.

Gardening Your Way to 10,000 Steps

What makes gardening such a sustainable way to stay active is that it doesn’t feel like exercise, yet it works almost every muscle in the body. It’s also a more meaningful use of time, allowing you to nurture an outdoor space filled with ornamental and edible plants.

On a busy gardening day, it’s entirely possible to reach – or exceed – 10,000 steps through a combination of digging, mowing, watering, and tidying, all without setting foot off your property.

* Disclaimer: Step equivalents are estimates based on the relative energy (calorie) expenditure of gardening tasks compared with brisk walking. Calculations use standard metabolic equivalent (MET) values from published activity compendiums, with 10,000 steps assumed to equal approximately 1 hour 40 minutes of brisk walking (around 6,000 steps per hour). Actual calorie burn and step equivalence will vary depending on pace, body weight, fitness level, and task intensity.