In 2016, an organized activity called “Plogga” took place in Sweden and quickly spread worldwide. Plogging is the act of jogging and picking up trash along your path, it combines the Swedish words plocka upp (pick up) and jogga (jog).
Plogging encourages a full body workout while keeping your community clean. It’s great for you and for the environment. With over 3 million participants worldwide, plogging is a great activity that encourages us to be responsible with our litter and inspires others to do the same.
8 Tips You Should Know About Plogging
1) Pick a location/trail and start by carrying a small trash bag.
2) Bring gloves and use discretion on what you pick up, your safety comes first!
3) Identify bins on your path and empty your trash bag along the way.
4) If you don’t want to run or jog, you can still enjoy this activity by walking.
Approximately 150 million Americans get their exercise by walking, running, and jogging outdoors. Imagine the difference we can make if just 5% percent of this group organize or join a plogga to cleanup and protect the numerous designated trails and urban paths that improve the quality of our communities and our access to wild places.
Plogging.org
5) Encourage your friends and family to join you.
6) If you don’t have company, visit Plogging.org to join an event near you.
7) Every bit helps, no matter how small your trash bag is or how often you go plogging.
8) Share your success on social media using #plogging to encourage others to join you.
Some Inspirational Stories
• Melanie Knight, a marine biologist and longtime runner from Vancouver tells CBC, “It just seemed like the perfect combination of kind of making a small change while doing something I’m already doing on a daily basis.“
• Daniel Fuller, a trainer from Ontario launched a Facebook group that attracted around 300 members. He tells CBC, “Getting groups to come out, get a good workout in with me and clean up the community a little bit, might help other people just to come out and enjoy the fun… It’s a win-win in my book.”
• David Sedaris, an author and comedian, often cleans the streets near his West Sussex home. He shared on social media that he’s up to 60,000 steps a day. He’s made such an impact that the local authority named a waste vehicle in his honour.
If you enjoy hiking or running, why not give plogging a try? By joining the challenge weekly or monthly, you can make a positive impact on your community’s trails and the environment. What are your thoughts on plogging? Is it an activity that you’ll be participating in? I’d love to hear your thoughts. For more eco-friendly related posts, visit my tag here.
I haven’t ever heard of this before but what a great idea. A great way to get moving, help your community and the environment. Thank you for sharing about this and tips!
Lauren – bournemouthgirl
Absolutely, it’s a wonderful activity with so many benefits! Thank you for reading Lauren!
I love the concept of plogging! It’s a great way to stay active and make a positive impact on the environment. Your tips for getting started and staying safe are so helpful.
Candice x
theblogsocial.com
Thank you Candice! It truly is a great activity that benefits everyone involved!
I haven’t heard of plogging before, but it’s a fantastic initiative to encourage others to do a small part to help keep their community clean.
Absolutely, it’s such a great activity that combines being active and helping the community. Thank you for reading Karalee!
I’ve never heard of plogging! What a fun word and great idea.
Corinne x
I agree, it’s such a great way to get active and help the community. Thank you for reading Corinne!
At first I thought this was some new blog-related trend but it’s even better! I love the idea that activities like jogging can be combined with things that take care of the community and environment. I’m sure there are lots of ways this can be incorporated into other things too — fantastic!
It’s such a great combination of activities that benefit you and the planet! Thank you for reading Molly!
That is wonderful! I hadn’t heard of it.
Isn’t it a wonderful activity! Thank you for reading Hena!
Great tips and amazing that you shared some stories or inspirations. This is a very helpful post for people researching plogging. Thank you for sharing!
Thank you for reading Fransic!
What a great initiative! I didn’t know anything about plogging, and I’m glad I do now. Thanks for sharing!
Thank you for reading!
Doing this has so much satisfaction surrounding it. You jog keep physically fit, healthy. Pick up trash, leaving the environs clean. Mentally, the satisfaction you’d get. This such a winner.
Absolutely! It’s such a wonderful activity that provides so much mental and physical satisfaction. Thank you for reading!
I love this; it’s much more productive than simply running. You’re also making a better environment for everyone else by picking up other peoples trash. It’s pretty disappointing that people still litter, but hopefully this will balance it out somehow.
I agree, it truly is a shame but I’m glad so many people are coming together to put in the effort to clean up their community. Thank you for reading Winnie!
What a wonderful idea! This is a great example on what would could accomplish if we all work together. It’s too bad that others disregard the beauty of nature and simply drop their litter. Thanks for sharing Winnie!
I agree, it truly is a shame that so many people still resort to littering. I’m really happy that there are over 3 million people who are actively helping their community and the environment. Thank you for reading Jodie!