It’s that time of year again. Spring time means gardening, yard work, and landscaping. That can mean a lot of labor intensive work. It’s important to take care of your body during that time to prevent injury and to get the job done safely. Here are a few tips to consider when starting your spring and summer projects.
- Warm Up- Before you start your project, start with a 5-10 minute warm up to prevent injury or cramping. This can be as simple as grade school calisthenics, but just get all your joints moving.
- Stay Hydrated- This is important even in cooler temperatures. With a change in activity level comes a change in hydration needs, so remember take a drink before you’re thirsty.
- Change Your Posture-don’t stay in the same position for too long. Change up WHAT or HOW you are doing something. This can prevent stiffness and cramping, and will keep you able to work longer too.
- Get Help-Use a wheelbarrow, dolly, or get help when you need. Don’t try to do it all yourself. Your back will thank you for it.
- Elevate Your Work-try an elevated garden bed if bending over is too difficult or painful.
- Body Mechanics-“Lift with your legs not your back”. Its a saying for a reason, don’t just bend at your back.
Use a garden cart or stool to help stay lower to the ground, and this will help with getting back up too. This can save your back and knees from pain and injury. - Variety-switch up your task or project to prevent repetitive injuries.
- Split it Up-don’t take everything at once, try to split up a heavy load to avoid serious back injury.
- Stretch-remember to stretch and repeat the warm up after your done. Its tempting to plop down in a chair with your favorite drink, cooling down afterwards can help prevent stiffness and cramping.
Landscaping projects should be a fun and rewarding experience. Remember these tips to make sure they don’t lead to pain and injury. If you do get injured, we can help you get pain free and back to work.
