Taking care of the environment while doing physical exercise, that is the formula on which plogging is based.
A few years ago, in 2016, the Swedish runner Erik Ahlstrom, tired of tripping over garbage in parks, squares and sidewalks, decided to remedy it by giving rise to this very strange sport.
It is a contraction of the swedish wordplocka upp (pick up) and the word english jogging.
The concept consists of taking advantage of a weekly run to collect the garbage that is found along the way. The formula quickly found success both in Sweden and in the rest of the world, thanks to social media.
“I’m amazed at the amount of trash found in nature,” Ahlstrom explained in several interviews when he launched the sport. “Debris can sit on the road for several weeks without anyone picking it up, so I’ve started doing it myself. It feels good to do it, even if it’s a small gesture”
From the town of Are, a well-known alpine ski resort in Sweden, spread to Stockholm and quickly all over the worldincluding Latin Americawhere in 2019 a record was even achieved.
“The world record is actually in Mexico City, four thousand people have done plogging in one day, but I think it’s about 10 thousand people doing it regularly in India. In India, the biggest running trend is jogging. plogging right now,” Ahlstrom told Reuters at a plogging held in Stockholm in 2019.
On TikTok the videos of plogging have currently over 11 million viewsand on Facebook people get together to practice it as a group.
In the events in which Ahlstrom participates, the Swedish runner motivates people by remembering facts such as the three million cigarette butts that are thrown away every day in Sweden and the amount of plastic in the oceans.
“Most of that plastic comes from the ground, so when we run, let’s run with a purpose,” he often tells participants at the start of a race.
Ahlstrom is not surprised by the interest in the sport around the world.
“It’s very easy, and the plogging burns more calories than normal running – you have to bend over and squatit’s good for the legs and you get a better body,” he told Reuters.
That the idea of ”running for the planet” arose in Sweden is not surprising. The Swedes are known for their love of nature and their environmental awareness. Teenage climate activist Greta Thunberg rose to global fame after her school strike outside government buildings in Stockholm sparked a global movement.
C.how it works exactly
It is very simple. The first thing to do before starting is to check that you have the right equipment such as a pair of rubber gloves, a clear bin bag and, if you are a member of a club, the corresponding printed t-shirt which also serves as information for passersby can tell what is happening.
Some also opt for a stick with a hook to pick up litter from the ground, but this is not recommended as you get more exercise if you bend over.
The plogging It is as good for the planet as it is for the figure, since you can train all the muscles of the body thanks to the fact that the abs and buttocks are worked every time you bend down or squat to pick something up off the ground.
Also, running and stopping and running again is what the pros call “interval training” and the muscles of the arms are also worked while transporting the collected garbage.
According to fitness apps, which allow users to enter and record calories burned while exercising ploggingthis ecological exercise is much more effective than doing jogging.
Specific, half an hour of plogging burns 288 calories on average, compared to 235 for jogging normal. And it can be done in the city, in the mountains, in the countryside… any place is suitable for running and collecting garbage.
“I feel like I’m doing a bit of good for the environment,” a British athlete told the BBC.
“It’s great that people come, get together and clean it up to make it a better place,” says a woman from a group of plogging. “You go for a run and even if you only pick up five pieces of garbage, it’s five pieces of garbage that will not end up in the sea,” adds another from the group.
Clear 30 cities in 30 days
The passion for this discipline led an Indian student to visit 30 cities in the United Kingdom in 30 days during this month of December to fight against climate change.
During his stay in Bristol, where he arrived last year to pursue a Masters in Environmental Policy and Management,Vivek Gurav has collected 5,000 kg of rubbish while jogging through that British city.
“I want to create a community of plogging throughout the UK, as I did in India,” the 26-year-old student explained to the BBC that he wants to inspire other people to create “their own groups.
Gurav started a campaign of plogging in his hometown, Pune (India).
Those known as “Pune Ploggers” are now more than 10,000 volunteers who “help make the world a better place.”
In the last four years he has traveled 675 km collecting more than a million kilos of trash in 120 “missions plogging“ and in November he spoke at COY17, the youth version of the COP27 climate summit.
He hopes to be joined by other ploggers, environmentalists and hobby runners as he visits each city on public transport to pick up litter across the country.
“I think that he plogging It has turned me into a climate activist who protests by picking up rubbish,” the young man who was invited to Downing Street in October by the new Prime Minister, Rishi Sunak, told the BBC.
“Communities can bring about a change in mindset, and this is crucial for a mass awakening to climate change and for governments around the world to act now.”
He also commented that he tries counteract the “negative mindset” of people towards the garbage, which he described as “careless” and “irresponsible”.
He also hopes that the community project will have a “positive effect” on mental healthsince it was a “key aspect” of the community of ploggers that he had developed in India.
“I want to offer a safe space where people can talk about their problems in life, a place to share their anxieties and fears,” he said.
To encourage people to attend regularly, Gurav sets up challenges and turns litter collection into a “scavenger hunt,” with groups “competing” to pick up the most litter.
“Making it a game makes people enjoy picking up litter more, increases motivation and keeps people coming back for more sessions,” he said.
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