Spring has sprung and the weather outside is delightful. The garden calls your name. But you’re reluctant to work on it in fear of back pain. The good news is you can enjoy gardening. Just follow these tips to minimize back pain and prevent injury.
- Warm up before digging in
Going from 0 to 60 mph is not good for the human body. That’s why fitness experts strongly recommend warming up before exercising. Gardening is a workout. Spend five minutes warming up for gardening. Your doctor can provide the right warm up exercises for you.
- Lift properly
Improper lifting is often the cause of back injuries. People bend at the waist to pick up something and pull back using their back muscles. That could injure the back muscles, ligaments, and discs.
The proper way to lift is to bend your knees until you’re squatting. Hold the item with both hands and keep it close to your body. Slowly straighten your legs to return to a standing position. Or use a wagon or dolly to transport items. Remember to use the same steps to lift the heavy item to load it on the wagon.
- Invest in a garden kneeler
Gardening can have you sitting down and standing up often. A kneeler can ease that. It has handles you can hold on to as you stand. They also act as a kneeling pad to protect your knees. This reduces stress on your knees and back.
- Find tools with long handles
Tools with long handles can reduce the number of times you need to bend while weeding and planting. Many tools have a long-handled version. It’ll be worth researching and reading reviews to find the right ones for you.
- Stand while gardening
Also known as wall gardening or vertical gardening, this is planting up rather than across the ground. It allows you to work at eye level. One way to do wall gardening is to tuck plants and soils into pockets of felt mounted to a wall. These plants grow to create a wall of flowers or greenery.
Another option is to add metal or wooden structure along a wall. The structure will have places to attach planters of different sizes. You have a lot of options to put your creativity to work here.
Back pain doesn’t mean giving up gardening. It’s an opportunity to think outside the box. Consider having someone else do repetitive tasks like weeding. Or add extra mulch to limit weeds. These five tips will make a difference to your back while allowing you to relish gardening.
Have a question? Please contact us or call 214-823-2052. We have two conveniently located offices in Addison and Dallas serving patients in Dallas, Addison, Plano, Frisco, Garland, and other cities in the DFW metroplex.
