As we approach the end of May, many of us will be diving into gardening and yard work for the first time this year. While everyone loves a beautiful yard and garden, it can often involve hours of outside work, bending and carrying heavy and often awkward items. This can add stress to our backs. With this in mind, below are some tips to help protect your back and make your gardening efforts more enjoyable.
1. Kneel instead of bend:
When working in the earth with your hands, it is better to kneel instead of standing and bending forward or sitting on a stool. Wearing knee pads or kneeling on a mat will protect your knees and make this activity more comfortable. If you do have to lift, make sure to squat and lift with your knees while keeping your back straight.
2. Pull instead of carry:
Use a gardening cart, wheelbarrow or wagon to move heavy and awkward items such as bags of top soil, mulch, fertilizer or yard debris. This will protect your back and the rest of your body from strain and allow you to work for longer periods more comfortably.
3. Use long handled tools:
When planting new shrubs or plants, weeding, raking, and cleaning out gardens, use long handled tools such as shovels, rakes, edgers and cultivators. This will decrease the amount of bending you need to do and allow you to work for longer without back pain.
4. Wear proper footwear:
Old runners are the perfect shoe for gardening. Instead of throwing them out, use them in the garden where they will continue to provide support and you will not mind getting them dirty. Rubber Boots with insoles or orthotics also work well for those messier jobs.
5. Many Hands:
Get some help – Spouses, children, grandchildren and others can help with the tedious aspects of gardening such as weeding, allowing you to get more work done and spend more time doing the less taxing aspects of gardening.
6. Take Breaks:
It is important to change your posture regularly, alternating activities that require you to kneel, bend, and reach such as weeding, with those that require you to stay upright. For example, after weeding for 15 minutes, do a different job, such as raking, or simply stand up and stretch or walk your property for a few minutes.
Happy gardening!
