“That’s really not what agriculture is today, and it can’t be that, or we can’t feed the people we need to feed,” says Tara Haskins, highlighting how modern American agriculture relies on automation to grow food at scale.

Haskins is the behavioral health lead at AgriSafe, an agricultural health care network formed by rural nurses in 2003. She directs the Total Farmer Health Program, launched in 2019 to provide wellness coaching on everything the agriculture business touches, from family to finances to personal fitness.

In visiting producers, she finds that, depending on the scale of their operation, they might spend most of their time driving equipment and running their business from behind a computer. Consequently, they may struggle to get the 150 to 300 minutes of weekly heart-pumping activity recommended by the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services.

“It’s hard to convince a producer when they’re putting in a 12-hour day that they need to find time to exercise,” said Haskins. “The challenge is helping people figure out what they can work into their schedule that doesn’t create more anxiety and burden.”

With this in mind, Amanda Nigg, a personal trainer and fitness influencer with over 100,000 followers on social media (where she goes by @farmfitmomma), designs short and sweaty routines. Research suggests this may offer greater health benefits than longer moderate-intensity workouts.

Nigg’s program launched in 2021 and is all about getting fit right on the farm by making use of tractor tires, grain bin stairs, and other readily available equipment. Her clients engage in a mix of strength, calisthenics and high-intensity interval training for 15 to 25 minutes a day, five days a week and on the best days for them.

“We’re not just giving you workouts that are gonna humble your ass in that time,” she said, “but it’s gonna fit into your schedule because the biggest thing is that farming is a 24-hour job.”

In addition to the physical training, Nigg and the two coaches on her team provide emotional support, using skills like those taught in the “Mental Toughness” course at the National Academy of Sports Medicine, to affirm their clients’ ability to overcome challenges.

AgriSafe’s coaches also take a holistic approach but don’t prescribe specific exercise regimens. Instead, they offer educational resources, like “Ready to Farm,” a collection of free posters and videos that show how to stretch and strengthen muscles used in farming and ranching to prevent injuries. As Haskins explained, losing the ability to work due to injury increases stress, causing financial worries, sleep loss, elevated cortisol levels, and a further decline in overall health. “We try to emphasize that an investment in your physical and mental health is an investment in your business,” Haskins said.

Injuries Take a Mental Toll

Even though not all farmers today are as active as they used to be, they are all still at high risk of getting hurt. Imagine muscle strains and sprains from lifting heavy grain bags or reacting swiftly to animals. Arthritic joints or unrelenting back pain from the repetitive motions involved in picking fruit and stacking hay bales. Cramped muscles or a frazzled circulatory system from absorbing combine vibrations all day during harvest season. Any of these ailments can slow or stop production, exacerbating existing stressors and causing a downward spiral.

Before founding Labor-Movement, Flores tore her meniscus while running after her dog on a farm. At first, she tried to handle the injury on her own but eventually decided to get cortisol shots and then surgery. “It took a lot mentally for me to admit that I was hurting and for me to ask for help,” she said. Her recovery was quick, but when she later tore her rotator cuff, recovery felt “monumental.” She refers to that time as “my dark days.”