Avoiding Sore Knees When Gardening

Knees take a lot of abuse when gardening. Whether it’s the bending to pick up things or kneeling to weed, there is a high demand for our knees to perform.

The best protection for knees is strengthening and conditioning exercises.
There are two sets of muscles to help the knee: the quadriceps in the front of the leg (thigh) and the hamstrings on the back of the thigh. Ask your health care practitioner about specific exercises appropriate for you.

Avoid squatting for long periods of time.
Squatting increases the work your knee ligaments need to do to support the rest of your body. If you do squat keep your feet flat on the ground. This shifts some of the work to your feet and ankles and not just the hard working knees.

Water your knees by drinking lots of water.
Knee joints need water too. This decreases the drying out of your knee joint and minimizes wear and tear.

Pad your knees.
Foam kneepads can be found at garden supply stores or trade stores (ones that carpet installers, tile installers or plumbers use). Test before you buy. You can choose knee guards that strap onto your legs. Buy a set that fits you.

Get a kneeler.
Kneelers incorporate a foam pad with handles. You protect your knees with the padding and use the handles to push yourself up.

Ice your knees for 15minutes after gardening if you tend to develop soreness.
Always, always put a layer of padding between your skin and ice. Never directly apply ice to your skin. Ice can damage or burn your skin (frostbite) so limit your ice time to 15 minutes on at a time. For some people 15 minutes maybe too long so listen to your body.

If pain persists, see your health care practitioner.
Delay can change a simple strain into a major event.

Don’t try to “work through the pain”.
Pain is your body’s way of dealing with injury. With pain your body is saying, “Stop what you are doing and listen to me.” So listen to your body’s cues. You can avoid injury.

Take breaks, drink fluids and allow your body to rest.

Use mulch or weedcloth wherever possible. Mulch decreases weed growth and keeps you off those knees. Weedcloth stops many of those little pesky weeds.

Use a garden wagon, stool, or chair to weed.

Consider raising the height of your garden beds to minimize your need to bend or squat while gardening.

Knees are one of the hardest working joints in your body. Take care of them and the knees will provide good service for years to come.

All in a gardener’s day,