Gardening is a great way to spend your time doing something productive. An outdoor activity not only gives produce that could make you happy but it also comes with a train of benefits. Here is how the health benefits of gardening can be classified:

• Before you get to your gardening activities
• While you are gardening
• After you get your produce

Before you get to your gardening activities
Gardening involves a lot of planning. You have to constantly look at making the garden better, and there is always something that needs to be bought. This means that you have to plan ahead and possibly include members of your family or friends. The benefits – gardening reduces loneliness. Loneliness is one of the biggest threats to the country where people hardly have the time and bandwidth to interact with one another. When it comes to a gardening activity, you no longer do it alone but reach out for some company. Besides, it also helps you to manage your time efficiently and helps you to be active at all levels.

While you do the gardening
Every day you garden, you are giving yourself the following:

• Exposure to sun
  A lot of possible heart diseases or disorders can be avoided if we get enough exposure to the Sun. Vitamin D, which is unfortunately not present in most of the food we eat, has its source in the Sun. Your body naturally absorbs the essential vitamins from the Sun as you garden, thereby reducing the risk of a plethora of health problems.
• Motor and kinaesthetic functions
  Gardening involves using your hands and coordinating between hands and your brain. While these may seem frivolous to young people, as one gets older – such activities seem difficult to comprehend. Take the case of children with special needs – gardening could be a great source of therapy where their motor functions could largely improve. It also helps you to retain your vigor in terms of using your hands for a wide range of movements.
• Exercise
  Regular gardening activities give you the effects of a low-impact exercise. It is certainly helpful despite being labeled ‘low-impact.’ However, if you were to use your wheelbarrow and repeat a gardening activity every day – it certainly works on your cardio. Consistent gardening gives you a lot of flexibility in your muscles thereby paving way for a lot of strength. Even with a low- or a medium-impact exercise that one gets in gardening, studies have shown that the risk of heart stroke reduces by 30% for those who are above 60.

After you get your produce
The sheer fact that your fresh produce is the result of your hard work could boost your self-esteem to a large extent. It significantly reduces your stress levels and helps you maintain a positive outlook. People who garden tend to be very mindful about what they eat, for they are already conscious about their eating habits.

The whole process of producing your own food and staying in touch with nature helps one to develop a lot of mindfulness, which in turn helps to reduce stress and maintain overall health. These are the many health benefits of gardening.