What is plogging? Why you should ‘pick up’ this green trend
Welcome to my plog blog, now that’s fun to say! Plogging comes from the combination of two Swedish words, ‘jogga’ and ‘plocka upp’ which means to pick up trash while jogging in English. The word was invented in 2016 when a Swede, Erik Ahlstrom, moved back to Stockholm and was distraught to see how much trash he was passing by on his way to work. Does this scene sound familiar? Instead of passing by the trash, he started to pick up litter whenever he was on the go and called it plogging. The activity slowly caught on with his friends, and Erik was inspired to rebrand picking up litter to be fun by making a community around plogging.
Erik Ahlstrom, founder of the Plogging movement
Erik’s initial intentions were to inspire people in Sweden, but plogging began to catch fire in other countries around the world. Since 2016, over 3 million people have participated in organized or solo ploggas in over 100 countries (source)! There are numerous ways to get involved including running groups, non-profits, and the main Plogga Facebook page where you can follow the world-wide trend. My favorite recent find is Plogging.org where they have created an open-source platform for anyone to submit their plogga event or group, so others can join in their area. They also have a map feature where you can see past and future ploggas across the US!
Plogga Facebook Page
So how do you plog? Plogging isn’t restricted to jogging as you can plog when you’re walking, skateboarding, surfing, or doing any activity outside. New words have even formed around plogging including, pliking, which is picking up trash while hiking or biking. You simply take a bag when you leave home and pick up trash as you go! You can wear gloves if you prefer to not directly touch the trash. Be careful with glass and apply basic safety rules like don’t run into the street because you just saw the bestest piece of trash you ever did see. It’s tempting, I know from experience. :)
Plogging has numerous benefits…and I thought I’d share some in case you still need convincing to join in on the trend.
- Burn extra calories (Half an hour of plogging will burn 288 calories on average - compared to 235 calories from regular jogging (source))
- Gain strength from carrying trash and doing squats to pick up trash
- Beautify your community
- Inspire others to not litter when they see you plogging (see the research)
- Help prevent plastics breaking down to microplastics that pollute our natural resources
- Have fun with family, friends, or your plogging group out in nature
I started plogging in 2018 when I went on runs, because I couldn’t simply run by trash without feeling guilty for not picking up at least one piece. What started out as guilt, turned into a fun hobby like a treasure hunt for me. I would find hilarious items from a children’s hopper ball that I gave to my neighbor to a fully packaged Debbie’s Nutty Buddy which was oh so tempting to eat. I have stopped running since then, but I do my best to pick up at least three pieces of trash when I go for a walk.
One of my favorite plogging finds, a full Nutty Buddy!
Have I convinced you yet to start plogging? :) In the end, picking up any trash while you’re on the go makes a substantial difference. Plogging has elevated this action into a world-wide movement and when you have a community of movers doing small actions together, real BIG change is accomplished. Try plogging today and see what treasures you find along the way!
P.S. If you’re reading this blog during April 2023, consider joining Down to Earth Living’s Earth Month Challenge which is you guessed it, plogging! We’ll be tracking how much trash we pick up as individuals during April and the top plogger will be mailed a prize of zero-waste goodies! Click here to pledge today!