Gardening boosts your mood and fitness, butit can be tough on your body. The right tools andmoves can reduce the stress on your joints, says AmyWagenfeld, associate professor of occupational therapyat Johnson & Wales University in Providence, RhodeIsland.This spring,tend to your green thumb – andyour arthritis – with these simple solutions.Continue readingGardening Solutions for Achy Joints
Love fall gardening, but find it painful with arthritis? Try these hacks to avoid straining joints.
Hack:Go vertical.Wall gardensare easy to tend while you’re standing or sitting up. Buy one ready-made or make your own by hanging plastic pots on a wall. “Keep the plants between waist and shoulder height,” says Julia Henderson-Kalb, an occupational therapist at Saint Louis University in Missouri.
Even if Jack Frost is still nipping at your nose, it’s not too early toget your garden growing. Whether you’re starting from seeds or seedlings, get a jump on planting with these tips that are easy on your joints.
Gardening has an abundance of health benefits including keeping you physically active and helping to loweranxiety and depression, both of which are linked to arthritis. Using the right tips and tools for the job can help ease any gardening task. Our experts share how to grow your green thumb.
Springtime brings out the gardener in us all. But it can be tough on the joints. Air plant gardening requires no shovel, no soil, no watering can, but the results can be spectacular. Just ask Carolyn Kosanouvong-Walker of Fresno, California, who began air plant gardening as acreative way to ease stressand take her mind off the pain of herjuvenile arthritis.
“What I love about air plants is that they are simple to manage and come in different sizes and types,” says Kosanouvong-Walker, 45, who was diagnosed at age 3.
Gardening can be a pain-free hobby for people living with arthritis—all you need is a little planning and creativity.
Continue readingGardening with Arthritis: Tips for Preventing Joint Pain
How does your garden grow? With ease if you use smart gardening gear for planting, watering, weeding and pruning. These helpful garden tools can help you turn on your green thumb.
Planting:
Reduce joint stress and increase leverage when gripping garden tools with thePeta Easi-Grip Long Reach Garden Tools($139.95 for a set of four). Each tool’s handle is more than 31 inches long to help prevent excessive bending and reaching.
Give plants hands-on attention in comfort with theGarden Kneeler/Sitter($50). The foam platform cushions knees and a sturdy metal frame with handles helps stabilize your movements while kneeling. When tending to raised beds, flip it over for a bench.
Continue readingMake Gardening Easier With These Helpful Garden Tools