Fall is here in Saratoga!
Before you reach for your rake this Fall, consider the possible consequences: neck pain, lower-back strain, shoulder pain and knee pain.
The following tips can help prevent the problems that plague most of us doing yard work:
- Do warm-up stretching exercises, without bouncing, for 5-10 minutes before yard work. Pull your knees to your chest, rotate your trunk and perform side bends with your hands over your head.
- Stand as straight as possible, and keep your head up when mowing, raking and trimming.
- When raking, position your legs in a "scissors" stance with one leg forward and one leg back, after 10 minutes, reverse your stance.
- When lifting piles of leaves, bend at your knees. Also, make the piles smaller and lighter, to avoid low-back strain for the next 4-5 days at work.
- Try the new ergonomic tools now available. They are engineered to take a majority of the stress and strain off your neck and back.
Hope this helps, Dr Matt Smith - Chiropractor