Warm-up with the Warm Weather

The people of Portland are rejoicing- Spring has arrived!  The clouds have parted, the sun is shining and the thermometer has reached 80 degrees.  With these changes comes a lot of gardening, yard work and new sports/activities.  Most injuries happen around the house when doing routine activities.  Knowing this, be sure to take steps before and after your chosen activity to lessen the likelihood of injury.  It may sound silly, but doing a simple 5-minute warm-up before gardening or raking can dramatically lower your chance of hurting yourself.  The warm-up can be as simple as some jumping jacks, running in place and deep knee bends.  Equally important is to do light stretching after you are done with your work.  It is much easier and less painful to prevent an injury than to deal with it after the fact.  Be careful and enjoy the beautiful weather!