Pain-free spring gardening

Whilst gardening has the benefits of easing stress and providing a form of exercise, remaining injury free will make for a positive experience and keep you actively developing your green thumb.

Gardening can be very physical, moving heavy bags of fertiliser, pulling out old plants and weeds, turning soil for planting vegetables, pruning bushes, and digging holes can take its toll. Also, considering we’ve just come out of winter, this sudden flurry of gardening activity can potentially cause injury and strain.

Top tips

• Start by planning your gardening day and aim to work on your garden in stages which will help to spread out the physical work.
• Avoid rushing which will make it easier to use correct lifting and squatting techniques.
• Go for a walk or do some stretching exercises before you start, to get the blood flowing.
• Keeping good posture is important to remain injury-free, keeping your back straight whilst doing general garden activities like squatting, lifting, reaching, pushing, and pulling.
• Moving regularly will help you set up in the right position and hopefully avoid unnecessary twisting from side to side or overreaching. For example, when lifting an object or digging with an implement, keep your hands close to your body as the more you reach the harder muscles need to work.
• Accessories like knee pads will help you keep pain free and more focused on perfecting your posture.
• Make sure to wear appropriate clothing and safety gear and that your tools are sharp and in good working order, which will contribute the ease with which you garden.
• Powered garden tools can save you time and reserve your energy for the more enjoyable parts of gardening.
• Try making your garden more ergonomic by bringing things on the ground up to waist height and things above to below your shoulder height will resolve most of your ergonomic issues.
• Potting can be done more easily on a table and raised garden beds or herb boxes make planting and picking a breeze.
• Try to limit yourself to 30-45 minutes of work when you first start back in the garden. This can be built up over time as your body is conditioned.

For the most part, the health benefits of being outdoors and being active make gardening attractive and using the above tips and easing back into it after winter, will make your pain free gardening experience more enjoyable.