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 | Yorkshire Times A Voice of the Free Press |
12:00 AM 13th July 2024
nature
Brits' Favourite Hobby Revealed, With Almost 40% Regularly Doing It
Image by Mariakray from Pixabay
Recent news states that the UK may see another heatwave soon, and many Brits will be using this opportunity to put their green fingers to use in their gardens.
Interestingly, Adobe Express found that almost 40% of Brits regularly undertake gardening as one of their preferred hobbies, with its numerous mental and physical health benefits. Regionally, Sheffield are the UK city who most love gardening, with 52% regularly doing so.
The top five hobbies Brits currently undertake
| Rank | Creative Hobby | Percentage of Brits that currently undertake this |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Cooking/Baking | 44% |
| 2 | Gardening | 38% |
| 3 | Photography | 19% |
| 4 | Knitting/Crocheting | 15% |
| 5 | Drawing / painting / scrapbooking | 13% |
Image by Benedikt Geyer from Pixabay
Gardening is second favourite among brits, with almost two-fifths (38%) of UK residents undertaking it as a hobby.
Other hobbies favoured by brits include photography (19%), knitting and crocheting (15%) and drawing, painting, or scrapbooking (13%).
Top five UK cities where gardening is the most popular
| Rank | City | Percentage of Brits that currently undertake this |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Sheffield | 52% |
| 2 | Norwich | 49% |
| 3 | Leeds | 46% |
| 4 | Newcastle | 44% |
| 5 | Liverpool | 42% |
Gardening was found to be most popular among Sheffield residents, with over half (52%) claiming to have green fingers.
Norwich (49%), Leeds (46%), and Newcastle (44%) follow closely behind, as many residents in these cities undertake gardening.
“One of the biggest benefits of gardening is that connecting to nature activates our parasympathetic nervous system which means that our bodies start to calm down and enter a state of 'rest and digest'. Even looking at greenery has been shown to calm people down.
“All ages would benefit from connecting more to nature, but given that children often spend more time indoors than they used to, this can particularly benefit them. It can also offer them interactions with adults that they might not otherwise experience. Gardening can provide a good source of exercise for older people which comes with the associated health benefits such as lower blood pressure, lower stress hormones and lower heart rate. Being outside in the summer allows people to make vitamin D which is important for the immune system and has many other benefits. This only occurs in the UK from about April to September, so during the summer months.”
Most common reasons Brits won’t take up creative hobbies
| Reason for not starting creative hobbies | % who gave this as their number one reason |
|---|---|
| I don't have the time to keep it up | 16% |
| I'm embarrassed/worried I wouldn't be good at it | 14% |
| I don't know where to start | 12% |
| Other | 10% |
| Too expensive | 6% |
Lack of time was the top response for several hobbies, including: gardening, knitting/crocheting, woodwork, soap/candle making, pottery, jewellery making, and playing an instrument.
Whilst for almost one in six of those surveyed (14%) ‘fear or embarrassment or not being good enough’ was cited as their top reason for not partaking.
"Creative hobbies are vital for our mental health, and healthy cognitive function, but when expenses or time factors get in the way, it can be hard to fit these into day to day life. There are, however, ways around this, such as taking the time to find cheap alternatives.
"If your ideal hobby is photography for example, finding low cost ways of practising and pursuing this on the side whilst saving up for any equipment you may want can help. For example, taking scenic snaps on your smartphone, utilising free software like Adobe Express, getting inspiration from photography blogs online, and practising photographing different scenes, objects, and people.
"If you struggle to find spare time for your hobbies, consider slightly adjusting your routine, for example, if you tend to finish work, eat dinner, and then relax on the sofa watching TV/scrolling social media, you could instead swap 30 minutes of this time to invest in your hobby. This small change to your routine may then lead to improved mental wellbeing and boost your cognitive function.”