Whether you garden in a community plot, raised beds, stoops, balconies, or containers, there’s nothing like the changing weather of spring to get your green thumb itching to get planting. After the months since your last harvest, though, your body might not be ready for the rigors of this favorite warm-weather activity.
The physicians at Doctors United with locations in the Bronx, White Plains, Ardsley and Yonkers, New York, hope that you won’t need to schedule a visit for your aches and pains, but the springtime surge in gardening related injuries is a real trend, so we’re helping with a guide to protecting your back this spring.
Consistently, year-after-year, gardening injuries are highest in the spring. It comes down to a combination of intense activity, a lack of conditioning over the winter, and poor posture and technique.
It’s similar to the “weekend warrior” effect in sports, where you exert yourself too much for the current capabilities of your body, driven by your excitement for the activity. When you’re suddenly faced with lifting, raking, digging and planting, it’s often your lower back that bears the brunt.
Preparation, knowledge, and the right equipment can help keep your back in the gardening game. Here’s our guide to protecting your back this spring.
Think about gardening as your sport. It may help you consider your approach more carefully. You probably wouldn’t hit a ball diamond or basketball court without a few stretches or tossing a few balls.
It makes sense. Warm-ups stimulate blood flow and prepare muscles for greater activity and effort. You may, however, give little thought to stepping outside and lugging bags of soil around.
Dynamic stretches and bends capture your body’s attention. Core muscles engage key partners in sharing the load on your spine.
Those long handles offer advantages, namely leverage and posture. Garden implements such as rakes, hoes, and shovels extend your reach, keeping your body upright.
They benefit you, that is, only when combined with proper form. You know about proper lifting technique with a box, back straight and lift with your legs, right?
Managing a shovel load follows the same principle, but it may feel more natural to bend at the waist to pick up a shovelful, then straighten your back to lift. Regardless of whether it feels natural, it’s a recipe for back pain.
Understand the ergonomic advantages that gardening tools offer and use them with the correct technique to stay injury-free.
Another enemy that can sneak up on you? Repetitive strain. Your body likes a variety of movements, so when you’re caught in a single position for an extended time, motion breaks become essential.
Set a smartwatch timer to beep every 20 minutes or so to remind you to change position, flex your back, and while you’re at it, have a sip or two of water to maintain hydration. The joints of your back will benefit.
Getting tired doing something you love is part of the satisfaction of a productive day. Pay attention, though, to jolts of pain or dull aches that may be the early signs of overdoing it or an injury that’s already happened.
There’s a good chance that back pain from gardening is musculoskeletal in nature and responsive to rest and home care. Rest when pain starts and treat problem areas with ice packs in the first day or two, in 15-minute applications several times daily to control inflammation.
Switch to heat after about a day to ease muscle spasms and strains. Over-the-counter anti-inflammatories offer pain relief and inflammation reduction.
For more serious injuries, contact Doctors United at our nearest location for a full examination and evaluation. Call or click to book your visit today.
