Have you noticed how the spring weather triggers many people's primal residential urges to pull weeds, plant flowers, and get the garden started? In my office, the spring weather also signifies something.
It is the onset of an influx of people coming into my office with a sore back as a result of working too long and hard in their yard.
In order to prevent this from happening, please be conscious of the following tips while gardening or doing yard tasks.
First of all, give your muscles a chance to warm up before working in the yard or garden.
Practice stretching with the various movements you will be performing while working in the yard.
Another option is to take a short ten to fifteen-minute brisk walk around the block to warm up your muscles.
When using a hedge trimmer, keep your back straight and use short side to side strokes to avoid repetitive excessive rotation of your upper and lower back.
Wide sweeping side to side motions will irritate the joints of your spine.
Make sure the shoulder straps are at least a few inches wide and ideally they are padded.
Otherwise, the shoulder straps will dig into the muscles of your shoulders and neck.
Pause after three to five minutes.
Keep overhead work to five-minute episodes.
This is especially true if you are holding a hedge trimmer or some other weighted tool above your head.
Avoid extreme reaching with one arm.
Not only is this stressful on your shoulder, but it can result in a fall if you are on a ladder.
One the most notorious gardening activities that often results in back pain is shovelling.
This activity requires repetitive bending and twisting of the back, while lifting a shovel full of material.
The lower back is generally a strong and stable part of the body.
However, when used improperly, problems will arise.
When shovelling, both feet should be planted firmly and the pelvis should be facing wherever the shovel is digging.
When a person digs at an angle or at the side of their body, this puts the back in a vulnerable twisted position.
This is especially true when a person is digging in front of themselves and then twists to throw the dirt to a different spot.
Doing this for a long period of time is really a bad idea.
If a person has to move dirt from one spot to another, he or she should dig in front of them and then reposition his or her feet and pelvis to face the spot where the dirt is to be deposited.
This prevents the back from twisting at all and keeps it in a safe and neutral position.
When using a wheelbarrow, the same rules apply.
The back should remain straight when lifting and pushing a wheelbarrow and be sure not to twist the back.
Do not fill the wheelbarrow completely full, as it will be "top-heavy".
If the wheelbarrow is in the process of tipping and a person tries hard to prevent it, this is a prime scenario for a back injury to occur.
Keep these tips in mind when doing your spring and summer yard tasks.
As well, see your chiropractor prior to attempting the yard tasks so that your back is functioning at its full potential.
As much as I love helping people with their low back injuries, I feel that preventing an injury from happening in the first place is much better than trying to treat it after the fact.