Mondays are exceptionally interesting days in our office.  In addition to our regularly scheduled patients, we invariably see a string of souls who have gone out into the yard over the weekend and decided to re-landscape in two days.  There are also those who haven’t swung a golf club in fifteen years but decided since the weather was so nice and all and Tiger did so well at The Masters that maybe Sunday would be a good day to play 27 holes or so.  Then there are the ones who made the mistake of going bathing suit shopping on Saturday and decided to start a new workout regime on Sunday and did the entire Pilates tape after Sweating to the Oldies.  You get the picture.  We affectionately refer to this wonderfully entertaining group as our Weekend Warriors, and this week’s column is dedicated to them.

The fabulous weather we are enjoying is enough to inspire anyone to get moving, but for those of us who aren’t staying in shape regularly it isn’t wise to tackle the entire universe in a fit of spring fever.  The first bit of advice is to take it slowly.  If getting out and getting busy is at the top of your list, take small steps.  Instead of re-landscaping the entire yard, choose one or two yard projects for the weekend and pace yourself.  Mowing the lawn hasn’t been a priority for several months, so do it in small increments.  Mow a bit then rest a bit.  Make certain that the muscle groups you are now about to begin using again become re-acquainted with the idea of work.  Often we see lower back strain and hamstring strain after a day of pushing the mower and pulling weeds.  Take a moment to stretch before going out into the yard and don’t overdo it.  As soon as your body begins to feel fatigued, stop.  Fatigue is a warning signal and should not be ignored.  Don’t worry.  The stamina will return and you’ll be able to do as much as you were last year, but don’t rush yourself.  If you’ve been sedentary over the winter take the time to build your strength again.  You’ll be glad you did.

Sports injuries happen to people who are in exceptional shape and play every day, so imagine the chance a  Weekend Warrior has at being injured.  The chance is about 100 percent unless some precautions are taken.  First make sure you know what you are doing.  If someone decides to take up golf on a whim without some skilled instruction, a disc injury in the lower back is inevitable.  I decided to do some ski jumping on the slopes in North Carolina in the spring of 1988 without proper instruction, and a devastating knee injury changed my life permanently.  Next, learn how to stretch and warm up.  Engaging in sports without proper muscle warm-up and stretching is absolutely foolish.   The most important aspect of becoming involved in any type of physical activity is conditioning.  Part of conditioning is stretching.  Regardless of what level of athleticism is involved, stretching is essential if you want to avoid injury.  I took three of my nephews to an Atlanta Braves game a couple of weeks ago, and the first half hour of their time on the field prior to batting practice was spent doing stretching exercises.  There must be something to this theory.

A simple stretch that is important to do in order to save your lower back is done every morning before your feet hit the floor for the first time.  As soon as you awake, pull one knee to your chest and hold it there for twenty seconds.  Then pull the other knee to your chest and hold for twenty seconds.  Finally pull both knees simultaneously to your chest and rock back and forth slowly.  This one minute added to your morning routine will save you many hours of suffering from strained lower back muscles.   I encourage all of my patients to perform this stretch every day.  You will be very happy with the results.

Hopefully this will help the Weekend Warriors prior to Monday morning.  As for the bathing suit shoppers, I’ll meet you at aerobics class.  I tried to buy a suit myself last week and am still recovering from the Pilates tape.  Treat your body well.