Rejuvenations Massage was just voted one of the top three places to get a massage in the DC area by Washingtonian Magazine! We are so thrilled to receive this honor in their yearly Best and Worst of reader poll. We want to thank all of our fantastic clients who voted for us…we wouldn’t be able to provide the services we offer if we didn’t have wonderful people supporting us. Thank you!

I like doing yard work, but sometimes I’m just not in the mood. So I set out to find some justification for letting it go another week. I came across a survey from the National Center for Injury Prevention and Control and Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Unfortunately, it didn’t give me the data I needed to stay out of the yard for the rest of the summer.

According to the study, of the 2.1 million people who did gardening or yard work, about 1.1% injured themselves. Men and women were equally likely to be injured doing yard work, but younger people (18-44 yr) were more likely to be injured than older people (45 + yr). Most injuries were minor.

Bottom line, it’s pretty safe to work in the yard, especially if you’re being careful about your posture while weeding (note: DO NOT bend over at a 90% angle! You’ll hurt your back. Squatting is the best stance for weeding.)

That said, I guess I have to go mow the lawn now.

Yesterday was beautiful here in the DC area—it was the kind of day that makes you want to get outside and do something physical. My wife and I took an hour walk in the morning. Then she went for long a swim and topped off the day with a trip to the driving range. She was so happy being outside. But this morning, she was feeling it…her shoulders were stiff and her muscles ached.

Every year, 3.5 to 4 million people end up in the emergency room due to sports-induced injury (source: American Sports Data). The same study showed that less serious sports injuries (those like my wife is experiencing today that hurt, but don’t send you to the ER) were five times as frequent—that’s 20 million people a year who hurt themselves relaxing and having fun.

So be careful out there. It’s easy to overdo it, especially when you’re having fun. Be sure to stretch your muscles so you don’t strain them. And if you do overdo it and the ibuprofen and ice don’t take care of the problem, treat yourself to a therapeutic massage…your body will thank you!

How about that heat this weekend…and this week. I thought we weren’t supposed to swelter like this until August. Every year I forget about the impact heat has on me until I overdo it and end up comatose on the couch for no apparent reason…for example, Saturday morning I went to see the little league team we sponsor. All I did was sit on a bench for two hours. I was wiped out afterwards!

Heat is dangerous. Unfortunately, during the summer we tend to want to be outside playing. At least I do (which is why I spent several hours in the pool yesterday.) That’s great, but there are some things to keep in mind to keep yourself healthy. I found a great little guide on the OSHA web site this morning. I suggest printing it out and keeping it with you as a reminder. I also found an interesting blog post with some great suggestions.

Here are a couple of my recommendations (not just mine…plenty of health experts suggest these things too):

Have a healthy, happy summer and take care of yourself!

I want to thank the organizers of the Reston Relay for Life…they put on a terrific event this weekend. Despite horrible thunder storms right at the event start time, they had everything running smoothly. We had a great time and met so many interesting, terrific people. Already we can’t wait until next year.

We volunteered to provide massages for the relay participants because we think the American Cancer Society is a very worthy cause. We’ll continue supporting the relay because it was just downright fun. The people who participate are generous and kind, and it was great hearing their stories.

The relay for life takes place at high schools around the country–if your town hasn’t had theirs yet this year, look it up and consider forming a team. It will be the time of your life.

Thank you to everyone who visited with us and made the event memorable.