Are there any gardeners out there with weak backs?

[Allshallbewell2021]

Any advice as I have a weak back (I'm working on it with exercises I've been given by my osteopath). But it's very slow progress.
Every spring I repot all my pots, enjoy it deliriously, and mess my back up for months.
I must learn not to be more careful obviously but should I just accept that gardening is for the young and those with abs of steel?
It's how you empty, fill, and move the pots I would love to know.
Thank you

I must learn how to be more careful I meant.
Also I wondered if I need a wheel barrow?

I use a stool or low chair for weeding etc.

My DM is an avid gardener with a weak back.

She uses stools/steps sometimes to help her get up, and does it in bursts rather than a marathon session. Sometimes she overdoes it and spends a day or two recovering!

OP, get a wheel barrow, they may life a lot easier. Are you able to be seated and have the pots etc on a table as you re-pot?

Warm up and warm down stretches too for a t least 5 minutes as if you were exercisingp, which you are.

Bunny Guinness did a book about gardening and fitness/back strength and she’s got a video on her YouTube channel which summarises some key points about engaging your abs and how to lift and carry things - worth a watch perhaps?

m.youtube.com/watch?v=jG8PpzMhdfE

Thank you so much, much appreciated!

I find I cause less back problems for myself if I work from a kneeling position.

Thank you so much for asking this question OP and for posters replies .
Big thank you to @Pattygonia -I've just watched that Bunny Guinness clip .Short ,useful advice .
Finally I know how to find my core muscles .Fantastic .Thank you .

YY to moving about a bit before starting. Work at a height that suits your back as much as possible.

If you need to move pots, have spare containers for emptying half the contents into and move them when they're half empty.

Water once the pots are in position.

Make sure your wheelbarrow's handles are at a height that suit your back, for example if they're too low you might end up doing more harm or never using it.

Use tools that suit, long handled ones are available.

Really appreciate this advice

Yes to all the above. I have a small folding sack truck for shifting bags of compost, heavy pots etc as well as a wheelbarrow. Weeding kneeling or sitting, although I do find that short bursts of bending to weed give my back a good stretch. Try and avoid heavy digging, just turn the soil with a fork and then kneel down to remove weeds. Good manual handling techniques too. I will watch that video later.

Just to add to the great advice so far, you don't have to replace the soil in pots each year. The compost manufacturers often say you do because the feed they've added will have ran out and they want you to buy more but I've had perennials in pots in the same soil for over 10 years and they do fine. I get a huge crop off my fruit trees in pots and I've never replaced the soil. I feed them an organic solid food like seaweed meal once a year, add a mulch layer in spring and autumn to keep the slugs/frost off/moisture in but this also works it's way into the compost and I liquid feed seaweed throughout the growing season. Save your back, mulching and no-dig is the future of gardening now anyway.

In addition to sitting on a stool to tend to pots, I also try to lift them higher off the ground onto a few bricks to raise them up so I don’t have to bend over too much. Obviously with large pots this is not possible but I find my large pots are high enough to reach without bending.

I don’t replace all the compost in my pots every year, I just scape off the top few inches and add new compost. I find using a four wheeled cart which holds a plastic box better than a wheel barrow as I don’t have to bend to pick up the handles and it’s more stable to push.

I also have long handled hand forks and trowels to use when weeding my raised beds, again less bending than with the regular sized ones.

Having said all that I have given up this year and am employing a gardener to do an hour a fortnight to mow the lawns, prune bushes and look after the flower beds - he will also help me with the numerous patio pots if I need help. I already pay someone to cut the lawn and prune the larger bushes twice a year so he’s not costing much more for this regular work. I am so looking forward to the help.