Gardening, It’s a Sport!

It’s the beginning of May, which means you’ll soon be on all fours in your flower beds. Maybe you’ve even started already! I must warn you: gardening is very hard on the body. The title of this article should be taken literally: gardening is REALLY the equivalent of playing a sport.

Don’t believe me? Remember last summer when you hurt your back shovelling compost? Your aching thighs after hours of weeding. Your face full of dirt after wiping the sweat from your eyes.

The old me, Audrey, 82, can tell you that she’s had a lot of gardening pain! I even had to abandon my garden one summer because of my back.

BUT! I’m now in better shape than ever, and the current me, Audrey, 30 again, will be giving you tips on how to garden safely this summer. Call me Coach Audrey!

Gardening Can Be Hard on the Body

All joking aside, think for a moment about all the movements you’ll be asking your body to make this summer: kneeling, crawling, carrying equipment, sometimes with the weight on only one side of your body, shovelling, scraping, pulling the hose, pushing the lawnmower…

That’s a lot of movement we don’t do at all in winter. A lot of movements we do without really thinking about them, sometimes by forcing ourselves considerably and without protecting ourselves from false movements.

In fact, you may never have really known how to move or force yourself without risk! In fact, I could give you a lecture on school physical education classes that don’t teach these essential things (as far as I’m concerned, the only thing I remember from my sports lessons is that some balls hurt more than others when you take one to the face).

One piece of advice I often hear when lifting something heavy is to “bend your knees”. Yes, that’s a good start, but if you still bend your back, it’s no use: you’re still likely to hurt yourself. But we don’t talk about that, we only advise you to “bend your knees”.

In short, this article written by your gardening sports coach (and revised by her own coach extraordinaire!) will give you some basic tips for a safe summer!

Take care of your body: it’s the only one you’ve got!

Preparing Well in Advance

My very first piece of advice is to strengthen your muscles BEFORE the gardening season. You don’t need a gym membership! Just do the movements you’ll be doing this summer a few times a week. Stand up, sit down, stand up. Do it a few times.

Come on, now coach Audrey’s looking at you! The text won’t disappear.

There, your first exercise is done. Is it difficult for you to bend over and get down on all fours? Do it in the comfort of your own home before doing it outside. Get to know your body and your supports, and you’ll soon feel more comfortable doing this movement. When you do it in the garden, on uneven ground, with a watering can in hand, you’ll be much more in control and less likely to injure yourself.

This applies to all the moves you’ll be making this summer: do you use the rake a lot? Practice your twists with a broom. Watering with a watering can? Walk around the house with a light weight on one side and lift it, as if it were a watering can. It’s spring, and we’re gently bringing our muscles out of hibernation.

To get results you’ve never had, you have to do things you’ve never done.

Four Tips for Perfect Form

When we talk about “form” in training, we mean the correct position of the body during an exercise. It may seem trivial, but if you pick up a dirt bag with poor support, leaning halfway to the side and looking behind you… Unless you’re 20, you’re playing with fire!

So here are a few things to consider when you’re working to get into perfect form:

1. The most important tip is to keep your back straight.

Not straight as an i, but more like a windshield wiper.

What’s that? Well, yes, you’re allowed to bend over, you have to if you want to keep your balance. Try to bend your knees while keeping your back perfectly vertical… you’ll go out the back!

When you need to bend over, imagine your hips being pulled back. Your back and neck remain perfectly aligned in one long line as you bend forward, and your weight is in your heels. This goes further than just “bending your knees”. If you’re lifting a heavy object, it’s the same: your back has to stay straight, no matter how far you’re bent over.

It’s a daily habit: when you’re walking, when you’re sitting at the office: keep your back straight! Contract your abs to help you do this, and by the time you’ve said it, you won’t need to think about it any more – you’ll be doing it as a matter of habit.

2. Try to avoid always exerting pressure on the same side.

Your watering can, your shovel, even your weeding should be done equally with each side of your body. This keeps your muscles and body in balance, and prevents the build-up of unnecessary tension.

When you’re on all fours on the ground, lifting a hand to pluck a dandelion, your whole body is working: your shoulders, chest, back, abdominals, pelvis, EVERYTHING! So the first thing to do is ask yourself if your back is straight. If you always have pain in one shoulder, or sciatica, it may simply be that you’re always pushing on the same side.

Bonus point: using both hands will get your brain working. Try brushing your teeth with your other hand and you’ll understand what I mean by “working your brain”!

3. Another tip on balance: keep your movements in line with your body.

Right? If you’re on all fours, your hips must be at the same level. That is, your pelvis is parallel to the ground, and you don’t have one buttock higher than the other. If you’re standing, it’s the same: both feet are firmly anchored to the ground, and your hips are at the same height. Your center of gravity is your navel: if you put all your weight on one foot, your center of gravity changes place.

Always try to think about your body’s “neutral position” and move towards it. Do you weed with your wrist bent downwards? Always have one foot on the edge of the flowerbed? Pull the hose behind you with your arm all crooked? Have your legs crossed? Not a very neutral position!

4. Are you anxious by nature?

I’m asking because Coach Audrey has anxiety in her blood! Literally: it’s genetic. And contrary to popular belief, anxiety isn’t about being stressed. It’s sometimes much more subtle and unconscious.

So here’s to you Laidback gardeners: relax your shoulders. You don’t need to add that extra tension to your body – it’s already under enough strain! Get into the habit of rolling your shoulders back to lower them. While you’re at it, loosen your teeth, loosen your eyebrows too, and, weird as it may sound, loosen your hips.

I know it’s a lot, but add these good practices to your daily routine with your grocery bags, your sweeper, your laundry… and you’ll see that these good positions will become reflexes in all your activities. You’ll be thanking me in ten years’ time!

Taking care of yourself today means investing in your health tomorrow.

A Warm-Up, Please!

Another strange belief: a warm-up is running for 15 minutes. Well, isn’t it? Not at all! Warming up means telling your muscles: “watch out, little quadriceps, we’re off to move some dirt, I’m going to need you.” That’s all!

How do you do it? Before taking on large, heavy shovelfuls of earth, do the movement three or four times without weight. Even if it gives you a slightly original look (do it indoors if your neighbors are nearby!), it allows you to get some blood and oxygen into your muscles. Before you put them to the test “for real”, you let them do the movement a few times without forcing them. You also check your form, while you’re at it, and then you’re off. With this simple 15-second warm-up? You’ve just greatly reduced the risk of pulling a muscle.

Start gently. Let your body start gently. Think of your car: if you start it and go straight onto the freeway, it’s likely to grumble. It’s the same with your body. Start slowly, weed a little, pick your tomatoes, and then, when you’ve warmed things up, walk your wheelbarrow of dirt.

Le plus important, ce n’est pas d’y arriver rapidement. C’est d’y arriver.

Listen to Your Body

That’s the best advice in this article. Your body speaks to you: learn to listen. What do you need today? A break? Stretching? Strengthening? Water? A snack? Hot shower? Ice?

I wasn’t athletic at all before and I didn’t speak the same language as my body. I didn’t enjoy physical work and, inevitably, I got injured.

There’s nothing wrong with taking a thirty-minute break in your Laidback corner between shifts. Thousands of free stretching videos exist on the Internet: check them out! A good stretch isn’t just about pulling your arms up in the air for three seconds.

In short, take care of yourself and don’t neglect the effort that gardening represents. Don’t “just” bend your knees, you deserve better. Prepare yourself, listen to yourself, take care of yourself.

Coach Audrey is watching you!