Our gardens are calling to us!

Have you noticed how, now that we’ve had a small amount of rain, the landscape is suddenly verdant? It’s been a sight for sore eyes seeing a green environment after weeks of dusty dryness. Yet weeds have proliferated. It’s been necessary to send in the weed warriors.

Like many of you, I do gardening. Which means I know firsthand how hard gardening is on the body. When my yoga students arrive at class with achy backs or sore shoulders or gardeners’ knees, I know it’s time to break out the poses that target these complaints.

Maintaining this yoga practice below will help us all sail through this Spring gardening season. 

Six simple poses

Start with Supta Baddha Konasana. Prop yourself up with a bolster, several blankets and use a strap that draws your sacrum down and keeps your feet close. If the bolster feels uncomfortable, you can just lie on a long folded blanket instead. Stay for five minutes.

Ardha Jatara Parivartanasana, Belly Twister Pose is un-propped. Or, you might use a blanket on either side to support your legs. Bend your legs in and then drop them to each side. Hold for thirty seconds and then repeat.

Do Supta Padangusthasana, Leg Stretch, lying face up, one let straight on floor, the other straight stretched up to the ceiling. Hold for twenty breaths before repeating on the other side.

Version Two of Supta Padangusthasana, one leg straight along the floor and the second leg out to the side. You may want to keep a bolster along to prevent the leg dropping to the floor. Hold for twenty breaths before repeating on the other side.

In Supta Upavistha Konasana, wall splits, elevate your hips onto a bolster next to the wall. Stay for three to five minutes.

Do Chair Savasana, as it is affectionately known, with your legs supported on the seat of a chair, while reclining. Hold for five to ten minutes.

These poses are an aid in recovering from gardening labours, but they are also good for other aches. This is a sequence that I used for years to mitigate the joint pain I experienced with osteoarthritis. Try it, too, for muscular discomfort you might experience after a vigorous sports workout or competition.