I got one of those foldup gardening kneelers made out of steel. Buy some knee pads and wear gloves. At first I thought it was embarrassing, but I have to crawl when I do weeds that are back near the fence. Then the next problem is to get back on your feet again.
At night get in shape by doing some squating-type exercises to strenghthen your thigh muscles. You walk into your flower bed right up to where you want to pull, squat down, then pull. Make sure you have something or someone around you to help you back up on your feet if you can’t stand up again easily.
Seriously, always carry your cell phone on you — even when gardening.
Build up your soil so it’s loose, and not hard. Weeds will come up easier.
Raised beds.
I’ve heard if you pull weeds right away, they don’t come back as strong after July or so.
See a chiropractor.
First, you may want to try this for your back…(it works for me!).
Lay on your back, on a carpet or floor.
Now, bring both knees up to your chest. Hold it there for 10 seconds. (yes, you can hold them with both of your arms), then, after that, shift them to one side, and hold there for 10 seconds then shift to the other side, and hold again for 10 seconds. This will help “loosen” your back so that you dont have much pain.
(I know, it works for me and I used to take a 500 mg of vicodine a day!).
Then, you can try this..(though, it will bother you for a while, it “loosens the back muscles and straightens the spinal cord so that you can be more flexible…I hear my spine “popping” when I do this, so I know that the spine is lining up).
Sit on a chair, and keep your feet planted firmly on the ground.
Now, lift your arms to below shoulder height, (what ever your comfortable with). Now, move your upper body all the way to the left (not too far, from the start, or you may “twist” your back, and have a charlie horse in it, or pull a muscle…give it time), then, swing it all the way to the other side.
Do this about 25 times the first few times, and keep working up until you can do this for 5 minutes each day.
You will probably be sore for awhile, but, this will bring flexibility in your life and you may get away from pain pills.
If your overweight, lose it! It will help a lot in lessening the pain on the back.
Cold packs also help in stemming the pain.
I would get the “garden weasel” or other implements they sell on TV to help in your gardening needs. I dont know if they work, but, I would rather do that, then bend over.
raised beds are great for people with limited mobility, check out the book “Square Foot Gardening.”
rent a child
sit on the ground if raised gardens aren’t available.
Hire a mexican.
Buy your vegetables…. This has to be the “lazy” tip… No?
I got one of those foldup gardening kneelers made out of steel. Buy some knee pads and wear gloves. At first I thought it was embarrassing, but I have to crawl when I do weeds that are back near the fence. Then the next problem is to get back on your feet again.
At night get in shape by doing some squating-type exercises to strenghthen your thigh muscles. You walk into your flower bed right up to where you want to pull, squat down, then pull. Make sure you have something or someone around you to help you back up on your feet if you can’t stand up again easily.
Seriously, always carry your cell phone on you — even when gardening.
Build up your soil so it’s loose, and not hard. Weeds will come up easier.
Raised beds.
I’ve heard if you pull weeds right away, they don’t come back as strong after July or so.
See a chiropractor.
First, you may want to try this for your back…(it works for me!).
Lay on your back, on a carpet or floor.
Now, bring both knees up to your chest. Hold it there for 10 seconds. (yes, you can hold them with both of your arms), then, after that, shift them to one side, and hold there for 10 seconds then shift to the other side, and hold again for 10 seconds. This will help “loosen” your back so that you dont have much pain.
(I know, it works for me and I used to take a 500 mg of vicodine a day!).
Then, you can try this..(though, it will bother you for a while, it “loosens the back muscles and straightens the spinal cord so that you can be more flexible…I hear my spine “popping” when I do this, so I know that the spine is lining up).
Sit on a chair, and keep your feet planted firmly on the ground.
Now, lift your arms to below shoulder height, (what ever your comfortable with). Now, move your upper body all the way to the left (not too far, from the start, or you may “twist” your back, and have a charlie horse in it, or pull a muscle…give it time), then, swing it all the way to the other side.
Do this about 25 times the first few times, and keep working up until you can do this for 5 minutes each day.
You will probably be sore for awhile, but, this will bring flexibility in your life and you may get away from pain pills.
If your overweight, lose it! It will help a lot in lessening the pain on the back.
Cold packs also help in stemming the pain.
I would get the “garden weasel” or other implements they sell on TV to help in your gardening needs. I dont know if they work, but, I would rather do that, then bend over.