Lush green lawns set in the middle of fragrant flower beds amidst the soothing chirping of the crickets - these are the joys of a garden. Hobby gardeners dedicate many hours of loving, painstaking and passionate work to creating their own small, colourful paradise. Gardening is a welcome change from hectic everyday pursuits and a popular hobby activity that brings people close to nature; above all, gardening is a healthy activity. However, an unfortunate posture or overexertion when gardening can quickly cause backache and tension. To prevent this from happening, the AGR (Campaign for Healthier Backs) awards the "Certified & recommended" seal of approval (given the accolade "very good" by the "ÖKOTEST" consumer magazine) to back-friendly gardening tools. "Rotak" lawnmowers by Bosch and gardening tools such as "Ergobase" shovels and spades are particularly back-friendly. These tools ensure users adopt a relaxed posture when gardening, with a special design to prevent back complaints.
Back-friendly lawnmowers
Grass flourishes and grows particularly quickly during the summer months and needs intensive care. But frequent lawn mowing can put a strain on the back. Hard-going lawnmowers without no scope for individual adjustments and with a heavy deadweight cause incorrect posture and one-sided strains. Possible consequences include backache, tensions and overexerted joints. A lawnmower should therefore fulfil the following prerequisites:
- It should permit an upright stance for people of differing heights
- It should warrant physiologically correct, ergonomic handling
- It should be easy to manoeuvre
- All controls must be quickly and easily used
- The lawnmower should have the lowest possible deadweight
- It must be possible to stow the lawnmower away easily
The battery-driven and electric "Rotak" lawnmowers by Bosch are certified by AGR as being pioneers in terms of spinal health. The length of the handles can be adjusted to adapt the lawnmower perfectly to the user's individual height. The advantage of this is that an upright stance avoids incorrect posture and rules out the risk of fatigue. The ergonomic form and positioning of the handles also prevents excessive strain on the wrist joints and tension in the shoulders and neck. The Rotak models only weigh 10 to 13 kilos (15 kilos including battery), making them much easier to manoeuvre and stow away than conventional models. In other words, far less exertion is needed before and after mowing than when using conventional lawnmowers. Furthermore, the Rotak has an agreeably low operating noise level, is environmentally friendly and pleasantly easy to handle.
Back-friendly gardening tools
Weeding the flower beds, setting onion bulbs or cutting the hedges are all jobs that gardeners love doing - but can cause backache nevertheless. However, prudent selection of ergonomic hoes, rakes and spades can do muscles and joints a world of good. Tools with curved handles for example are good for the back, making it relatively easy to move the load. Individual handle heights also relieve the pressure on shoulders and wrists - whether in loosening solid ground, planting flowers or plucking out the weeds. First-rate quality provides the necessary stability and guarantees the best possible safety when using the tools.
Ergobase is a gardening tool manufacturer who has specialised in exactly these criteria. Ergobase gardening tools permit back-friendly working while also preventing inappropriate strains. Among others, the AGR has certified the Ergobase "Gartenboy", among others. This is a back-friendly all-rounder which acts as a fork, rake and hoe all in one. The long handle rules out the need to bend over constantly, thus clearly reducing the strain on the spinal column. The "Gartenboy" acts as a kind of extension of the hand, loosening solid ground quickly and easily without any great exertion. Small rotational movements quickly loosen weed routes while going gentle on the joints. The Ergobase spade has also been certified, with its S-shaped handle that adapts perfectly to the ergonomic needs of the user. The S-shape also minimises impacts and vibrations and reduces the exertion needed when digging.
Good to know: To cope with the daily snow clearing duties in winter, the AGR also recommends a back-friendly tool - the certified snow shovel by Ergobase.
More information about making every day more back-friendly together with back-friendly everyday products with the AGR seal of approval and a list of trained, certified retailers is available on request as an information package together with the "Ergonomie-Ratgeber" (Ergonomic Guide) and the "rückenSignale" (back signals) guide at a price of €9.95 from the AGR (phone +49 4284/926 99 90 or www.agr-ev.de/patientenmedien).
In brief:
Gardening is a welcome change from hectic everyday pursuits and a popular hobby activity that brings people close to nature; above all, gardening is a healthy activity. However, an unfortunate posture or overexertion when gardening can quickly cause backache and tension. To prevent this from happening, the AGR (Campaign for Healthier Backs) commends back-friendly gardening tools. The AGR "Certified & recommended" seal of approval in the "Gardening Tools" category has been awarded to gardening tools by Ergobase and to the Rotak lawnmowers by Bosch. More information about making every day back-friendly can be found at www.agr-ev.de
Back-friendly lawnmowers
Grass flourishes and grows particularly quickly during the summer months and needs intensive care. But frequent lawn mowing can put a strain on the back. Hard-going lawnmowers without no scope for individual adjustments and with a heavy deadweight cause incorrect posture and one-sided strains. Possible consequences include backache, tensions and overexerted joints. A lawnmower should therefore fulfil the following prerequisites:
- It should permit an upright stance for people of differing heights
- It should warrant physiologically correct, ergonomic handling
- It should be easy to manoeuvre
- All controls must be quickly and easily used
- The lawnmower should have the lowest possible deadweight
- It must be possible to stow the lawnmower away easily
The battery-driven and electric "Rotak" lawnmowers by Bosch are certified by AGR as being pioneers in terms of spinal health. The length of the handles can be adjusted to adapt the lawnmower perfectly to the user's individual height. The advantage of this is that an upright stance avoids incorrect posture and rules out the risk of fatigue. The ergonomic form and positioning of the handles also prevents excessive strain on the wrist joints and tension in the shoulders and neck. The Rotak models only weigh 10 to 13 kilos (15 kilos including battery), making them much easier to manoeuvre and stow away than conventional models. In other words, far less exertion is needed before and after mowing than when using conventional lawnmowers. Furthermore, the Rotak has an agreeably low operating noise level, is environmentally friendly and pleasantly easy to handle.
Back-friendly gardening tools
Weeding the flower beds, setting onion bulbs or cutting the hedges are all jobs that gardeners love doing - but can cause backache nevertheless. However, prudent selection of ergonomic hoes, rakes and spades can do muscles and joints a world of good. Tools with curved handles for example are good for the back, making it relatively easy to move the load. Individual handle heights also relieve the pressure on shoulders and wrists - whether in loosening solid ground, planting flowers or plucking out the weeds. First-rate quality provides the necessary stability and guarantees the best possible safety when using the tools.
Ergobase is a gardening tool manufacturer who has specialised in exactly these criteria. Ergobase gardening tools permit back-friendly working while also preventing inappropriate strains. Among others, the AGR has certified the Ergobase "Gartenboy", among others. This is a back-friendly all-rounder which acts as a fork, rake and hoe all in one. The long handle rules out the need to bend over constantly, thus clearly reducing the strain on the spinal column. The "Gartenboy" acts as a kind of extension of the hand, loosening solid ground quickly and easily without any great exertion. Small rotational movements quickly loosen weed routes while going gentle on the joints. The Ergobase spade has also been certified, with its S-shaped handle that adapts perfectly to the ergonomic needs of the user. The S-shape also minimises impacts and vibrations and reduces the exertion needed when digging.
Good to know: To cope with the daily snow clearing duties in winter, the AGR also recommends a back-friendly tool - the certified snow shovel by Ergobase.
More information about making every day more back-friendly together with back-friendly everyday products with the AGR seal of approval and a list of trained, certified retailers is available on request as an information package together with the "Ergonomie-Ratgeber" (Ergonomic Guide) and the "rückenSignale" (back signals) guide at a price of €9.95 from the AGR (phone +49 4284/926 99 90 or www.agr-ev.de/patientenmedien).
In brief:
Gardening is a welcome change from hectic everyday pursuits and a popular hobby activity that brings people close to nature; above all, gardening is a healthy activity. However, an unfortunate posture or overexertion when gardening can quickly cause backache and tension. To prevent this from happening, the AGR (Campaign for Healthier Backs) commends back-friendly gardening tools. The AGR "Certified & recommended" seal of approval in the "Gardening Tools" category has been awarded to gardening tools by Ergobase and to the Rotak lawnmowers by Bosch. More information about making every day back-friendly can be found at www.agr-ev.de
