Six Tips to Prevent Leaf Raking Injuries
During autumn, many of us engage in outdoor tasks to prepare our homes and yards for the winter, including raking copious amounts of leaves. Raking leaves can be quite physically demanding, requiring repetitive movements like pushing, pulling, lifting, twisting, and turning that can place biomechanical stress on the low back, shoulders, and neck. It’s important to take steps to prevent injury while raking leaves and prepare your body for the physical demands of raking. Check out our 6 tips to prevent leaf raking injuries this autumn!
6 Tips to Prevent Leaf Raking Injuries
Warm up before raking.
Raking leaves is a physically demanding activity requiring repetitive movements that place the body, low back, neck, and shoulders in awkward positions such as twisting, bending, squatting, and kneeling.
One of the best ways to prepare your body for raking is to engage in a muscle warm up. Gentle stretching can help prevent strain and fatigue in vulnerable muscles of the neck, shoulders, back, thigh, and lower leg. Stretching also increases circulation and blood flow to the joints, soft tissues, and muscles, which can reduce the risk of injury and of muscle spasms and stiffness.
Use a rake that is proportionate to your body.
Using a rake that is too long or too short for your body can cause you to alter your posture and strain your muscles. Consider the width of your rake as well. A narrow rake makes the weight of the leaves lighter but can make the raking time longer. An extra wide rake gathers more leaves but can place more strain on your back.
Maintain proper raking technique.
When raking, stand up straight with your knees slightly bent and your core engaged, keeping your chest upright. Stagger your feet into a scissor stance for greater stability. The scissor stance also helps to distribute weight evenly and prevent unnecessary strain on your knees and back. Pull the rake with your arms creating a rowing motion, not a twisting motion. Keep the rake close to your body and avoid reaching and overextending to grab leaves further away as this can strain your back. Keep one hand positioned at the top of the handle of the rake and occasionally switch hand positions to spread the workload evenly between your arms and shoulders.
Use proper lifting technique.
Whether you’re lifting bagged leaves or a wheelbarrow, it’s essential to use proper lifting technique to avoid injury. Bend at the knees, keeping your chest up and back straight. Engage your core and use your legs and hips to lower and raise the load. Do not twist or bend when pushing or carrying items. Keep the load close to your body when carrying.
Wear protective clothing.
Wear layers so that you can remove articles of clothing as you work up a sweat. Wear comfortable shoes or boots with good support and traction as wet leaves can be slippery. Wear gloves to protect from scratches as well as to prevent blisters while raking. If you use a leaf blower, use safety glasses or googles to protect your eyes from flying debris.
Pace yourself and take breaks.
Plan to rake your leaves each week, instead of waiting for all the leaves to fall and doing one day long raking session. Do a section of the yard at a time, taking breaks every 20 minutes to stretch and give your muscles a rest. Small, repeated sessions are safer than one big job of raking in terms of muscle strain or risk of injury to the back, shoulders, or neck.
