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Physical Therapy in Massapequa

Protect Your Back When Gardening

If you enjoy gardening and are planning to participate this season, there are several helpful tips you can do to protect yourself. Spending countless hours of mulching, planting, or weeding can be tiring and strenuous on the body. You may even find yourself experiencing some pain when completing certain tasks. Jumping into gardening can cause a great deal of stress on the body which can set up opportunities for aching back or painful knees. Here are three ways in which our Massapequa physical therapist at Park Physical Therapy can help strengthen your back and core along with improving flexibility:

    1. Make Plans For Gardening. Think of gardening as an exercise program, is your body ready and capable of completing these tasks just yet? Consult with our Massapequa physical therapist before starting your yard work plans. Our team can help you with an effective stretching plan that will focus on stretching your legs, arms, neck, and back before and after yard work.
    1. Modify Your Garden. There are a few ways gardening activities can be modified to help prevent back or knee pain. Using ground covers or mulch can reduce the need of lawn mowing, weeding, and watering tasks which are activities that put a lot of strain on your back. To decrease bending, consider using raised beds. The height of raised beds can be adjusted to suit the gardener’s specific needs or preferences.
  1. Lift Properly.  By using practicality and being aware of your body’s’ mechanics, many injuries can be prevented. When lifting heavy objects that can cause strain on the body, it is important to lift with your legs while bending, not with your lower back. Also, having your legs positioned in a wider stance while lifting will allow the load of stress to be put on the leg muscles rather than the lower back muscles. It is also important to remember that your tools are there for a reason so don’t forget to use them. For example, using a wheelbarrow to carry multiple or heavy objects at a distance can minimize the amount of force and stress being put on the body.

If you are experiencing pain when gardening, it is important to listen to your body and stop the activity. If you continue gardening while you are experiencing pain, the pain can progress into something more serious; this is where our Massapequa physical therapist at Park Physical Therapy can help. If you are suffering from back pain or you are looking for a means to help prevent back injuries from occurring, contact our office today to make an appointment!

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Protect Your Back When Gardening
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Protect Your Back When Gardening
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If you continue gardening while you are experiencing pain, the pain can progress into something more serious; this is where our Massapequa physical therapist at Park Physical Therapy can help.
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