Preventing Neck and Back Pain while Gardening

Gardening always brings a sense of satisfaction after a job well down but remember that while gardening may not be a contact sport - it is still exercise!
Here's 10 tips for preventing neck and back pain while gardening.

1. Warm up & Stretch

Get the blood circulating with a 5 min walk, then stretch with the general movements your body will be performing while gardening

2. Start slowly and tackle the easy jobs first

Avoid lifting heavy loads first. Do weeding, planting or pruning instead. Tackle heavier lifting tasks midway through the chores and use a wheelbarrow, if you can.

3. Avoid repetitive stress

Avoid any repetitive gardening tasks ie weed/prune no longer than 15 minutes before switching hands to avoid overload and strain to one side of the body.

4. Avoid prolonged positions and forward or side bending for too long 

Vary your tasks often. When heavy digging in the garden stop and rest every 15 minutes. If using loping shears to cut branches overhead rest your shoulders by bring your arms down to your sides every 5 minutes. Kneel on a foam mat to perform weeding with one arm support, if necessary, rather than bending and reaching.

5. Avoid jerking movements 

Pull the lawnmower cord with smooth, controlled movements. Practice the movement with your arm a few times beforehand.

6. Use the right tools for the job

When transplanting a plant avoid using your body and pulling with your arms. Use a long handled shovel rather than a short handled spade to improve your leverage and avoid excessive forward bending that can injure your neck or lower back. Use a saw rather than loping shears to cut thick branches.

7. Use good technique

Lift bags of compost out of the car boot by dragging the bag towards you as close as you can before lifting. Keep your back straight and bend to lift with your hips and knees. When cutting the hedge with electric hedge clippers make sure the length of the clippers is right for the job, keeping your back and neck straight and using small sweeping strokes. Avoid reaching away from the body for too long to prevent neck and back injuries.

8. Rest!

Rest is important during gardening as people can get very task specific wanting to “get the job done” all in one afternoon. Break up the big job into smaller jobs and tackle one project in the mid morning and another in the mid afternoon to allow the body to recover.

9. Hydrate!

Remember gardening is exercise. If you plan on being in the garden for over one hour, drink from a bottle of water often to prevent fatigue and dehydration in the sun.

10. Ask a professional

If a task seems like too much work or too dangerous - it probably is! Hiring a professional who has the right tools and expertise for tasks like landscaping, tree-felling or trimming large hedges can save your body from serious injury.


If you are suffering from neck or back pain I can help you so please feel free to give me a call.
We also stock wheat bags and anti-inflammatory cream to help ease pain and stiffness at home.