How to Work in the Yard Without Killing Yourself...

... Too Much.

(This is the first of many posts to come by massage therapist, Bill Bryan... adapted from his radio show, Massage Moment, which used to air on WCOJ, within Ben Briggs' show, Health Focus.

Health Focus, by the way can now be heard on Brandywineradio.com..)

"This week I had several clients come to me with low back pain from yard work. So I says to myself, 'Self, you should do a show on that.' (Plus, Ben told me to...!)

Okay - let's start with mulch. First of all, from what I've seen, people don't hurt themselves too much spreading mulch, as much as lifting the bags out of the trunk!

Mulch bags are usually around 40 pounds each. So, when you're lifting a 40 lb. bag out of your trunk, think of your body mechanics. Do not lift the bag by leaning forward and bending at the waist! That is an injury just waiting to happen! Whenever you use low back muscles to lift weight that is out in front of you, you are putting an extreme amount of force on muscles that are not intended for that kind of load. *(Remember our talk about unhealthy physical stress? Well... here ya go...)

Rather than lifting with your low back muscles, keep your back straight, and bend at the knees. This way you can lift the bag with your quadriceps, which is the largest and most powerful muscle group in your body! Located on the front upper half of the legs, they can much more readily handle the workload. By keeping the back straight, grasping firmly with your hands, and not lifting with your back but with your legs, you are at less risk of injuring your low back.

Weed pulling...

Another low back hazard, but also a knee hazard. Many people say that pulling weeds hurts not only their low backs for their knees as well. These are folks that work while standing and stooping over, to save their knees, until their low back starts to hurt. Then they kneel to give their back a break, until their knees hurt so bad, they're forced to stand up again.

Let me make two suggestions: 1) Get your spouse to do it. 2) Bring a short little step stool to sit on. Sitting on a low step stool places you closer to the ground, which means you don't have to keep bending over and all the way back up again. You only have to bend a short distance. And it also alleviates the pressure to your knees.

Another quick tip: when raking or shoveling, alternate between right and left. In other words, don't keep using the same muscle groups to do all the same work.

And for everything else... there's massage!

This is Bill Bryan, reminding you that you are 'fearfully and wonderfully' made!"

Bill can be reached for appointments by phone: 484-798-8029, or by email: triscale@verizon.net