age is really just a number

This weekend my running club was challenged to pick up at least one piece of trash apiece on our weekend long run. My running partner and I picked up 10 pieces and they were very easy to find. You would be amazed at the amount of trash along the trails by Grapevine Lake. It’s sad, actually, the kinds of things we found. Paper cups, napkins, straws, pieces of broken plastic items, a discarded yogurt container, and lots of empty plastic water bottles; just to name a few. 

This practice of picking up trash while running is commonly referred to as “Plogging”. It is the latest Scandinavian trend that is spreading to the United States. It started due to increasing concerns about our plastic pollution. It is a combination of social responsibility and personal fitness. A win:win! 

In our local community, the President of Lake Grapevine Runners and Walkers, Kelly Richards (K2), is an avid “plogger” and I’m always amazed at the amount and variety of trash she finds along the trails. She has locally championed this trend and posts her finds on Facebook each week to remind others of the trash problems we have in our cities.

I think “plogging” is a great trend and we should all join in. There is also another good reason to add this to your exercise routine. Turns out that the average “plogging” hour burns 575 calories, as compared to 400 calories for just jogging! This is due to adding bending, stretching and squatting to your run. So, you can clean up your local community and burn more calories than just running by the never-ending litter.

“Take nothing but pictures and leave nothing behind but footprints”

This is a great sign I’ve seen at many parks and nature trails. If we all put this in practice, plogging would be unnecessary; but since people still thoughtlessly throw things out of the window of their car and needlessly litter our roads, let’s join this new trend and “plog” on!