5 tips for fall yard work

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:

1. 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.
2. Stand as straight as possible, and keep your head up when mowing, raking and trimming.
3. When raking, position your legs in a "scissors" stance with one leg forward and one leg back, after 10 minutes, reverse your stance.
4. 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.
5. 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