Enjoy spring injury free with these tips from PhysioMAX wellness

April 16, 2015 - PRLog -- Being Canadian, we all take pride in making the best out of our winters and the cold weather with which we are faced… but this past winter seemed to have had a lot of us hibernating!

After months of such hibernation and succumbing to the polar vortex, Canadians’ desires to get outside and be active is quite strong! The warmth and promise of the upcoming spring season has kickstarted a more active lifestyle for many of us.

HOWEVER… we must keep in mind that we need to have patience and slowly prepare our bodies for the physical activities in which we plan to engage in order to avoid injury!!!

Physiotherapists, massage therapists and chiropractors see a great influx of patients this time of year with all sorts of  gardening injuries to the lower back, shoulders and knees that can easily be avoided.  A few tips from our staff at PhysioMAX  Wellness:

Warm your muscles up with a 10-15 minute brisk walk followed by a few stretches.
While gardening, make sure to keep your proper form - back straight, bending at the knees.  Use the larger muscles in your legs as opposed to the smaller ones in your back.
Always move your feet when raking or sweeping as opposed to twisting your back.
Keep your shoulders back and down - don’t roll forward.
If picking up objects, make sure to lift with your legs and ask for help if items are too heavy.  Also, use a wheel barrow for heavy item relocation.
Squat or kneel when planting.
Make sure to stretch often and rest in between tedious tasks.
DONT OVERDO IT!!  Spread the work out over days or weeks - gardening is a workout that needs to be treated like all other workouts! People tend to get engulfed in the moment and over excited to be out and about gardening that they forget to take it easy!

Once you are done with your gardening for the day, a few tips to help if you feel stiff or sore:

Walk it off
Stretch
Ice certain area if sore
REST

PhysioMax Wellness in Burlington Ontario provides various tips and treatments for every client's needs. Healthcare providers from this clinic are very knowledgeable about the treatments needed by patients in order to help them recover from their injuries. This multidisciplinary clinic in Burlington Ontario provides Physiotherapy, Acupuncture, Chiropractic and Massage Therapy in order to tend to any kind of injuries and prevent issues from occurring in the first place. Please contact us or visit www.physiomaxwellness.ca for more detailed information.