Staying comfortable when crafting
Stretches, exercises and more to be a strong crafter...
INSIDE: ‘Crafting’ a making practice for the long term and a ‘crafting health’ routine for makers! (Hint: hand exercises, stretches and mindfulness…)
Throughout my years of crafting, I’ve experienced none of the common ailments knitters can face (like repetitive stress, tennis/golfers elbow, carpal tunnel or muscular aches in my hands, forearms, shoulder, back or shoulders.)
And what a relief that has been!
However… this has changed.
Now, I’ve got pain in the side of my right hand, my right forearm and my right shoulder joint is clicking and often feels out of place.
It’s taken me by surprise!
My current exercise routine is walking 6 days a week in nature, and two short home yoga sessions every day (one in the morning and another just before bed.)
My crafting practice has always involved occasional stretches and checking my posture, but not with consistency! I need to incorporate daily stretches and exercises (and stick to them!) if I’m going to knit long into my old age.
So… off to do some research I went.
‘Knitting Comfortably: The Ergonomics of Handknitting’ by Carson Dermer and his online articles for Modern Daily Knitting were useful!
I also watched an informative interview Madeline from Fruity Knitting did with Regina Sennrich, who presented ‘Knitting Health’ at the Swiss Yarn Festival.
(Note: the interview is in German with subtitles.)
They discussed ways to make knitting more comfortable, and how we can deal with pain. I recommend watching it, as I learned a lot.
Regina’s clever technique involved taping the thumb and index finger to form an ‘o’ shape. This shape alleviates strain on the fingers and thumb, especially important for those with arthritis and tendonitis.
Those were just some resources I found when I spent hours researching how to create a ‘healthy crafting practice’. I’ve compiled it all here on Knit Like Granny.
I’m committed to my daily ‘healthy crafting’ routine for a pain-free future. I’ve got a checklist so I can tick off the exercises each day. It gives me a visual for how much progress I’ve made, too, which is encouraging!
I’m determined to knit and crochet for the rest of my life!
Experts say it takes a few weeks to form a new habit. So I’ll keep you posted on how I’m doing.
And another question for you: what’s your number one tip for staying comfortable while crafting?
Press reply or leave a comment!
P.S. Coco & Pepper have some great reads for you on Sunday…
(Disclosure: Any purchases made through links may earn me a commission.)
Before you go…
This is an issue we should all take notice of, no matter what age we are. And though I do find more aches and pains arising from lots of knitting, spinning and weaving, the best way I know to keep aches and pains at bay is to switch it up! Years ago I would switch back and forth between knitting and crocheting. Now I switch between knitting, weaving, and spinning. And while I do any of these things, I try to keep in the forefront of my mind (unless a pattern is particularly exacting:) to sit up straight, while also relaxing my grip on my tools. Thank you Jodie for all the good information about this needful topic!💖
Even something as simple as getting up to drink a glass of water regularly, helps so much.