How to lift

It is important that you know how to lift properly so that you don’t injure your back. To do this, you will need to use your abdominal and back muscles and your legs.

Step 1: Preparation
• Make sure that the area where you are lifting and moving the object to is clear of obstacles. It seems obvious but you may try to save time by leaving a shoe or bag in the way.
• How heavy is the object you are lifting? Is it a bag of books or a full laundry basket full of wet clothes? Depending on your strength, you may need to get help from someone else.

Step 2: Body preparation
• Make sure your feet are shoulder width apart and you have both feet flat on the ground.
• Keep the object close to you when you lift it and keep it at waist level

Step 3: Activate you core muscles (Stomach and back muscles)
• The core muscles act as a girdle to protect your back.
• Keep them engaged throughout the lift.
• Remember to keep breathing. Don’t hold your breath.

Step 4: Bend at the hips and knees
• Don’t bend down at the waist because this puts a lot of stress on the low back.
• Kneel down, resting one knee on the ground or do a squat with your knees apart.
• You always want to keep your back straight during the lift.
• Keep the object close to your body as you prepare to lift it.

Step 5: Lift
• Keep the object close to your body as you lift it and use your leg muscles to stand up.
• The leg muscles are stronger than your back muscles, so they are better muscles to use to perform the lift.

Step 6: Putting the object down
• When you are ready to put the object down, don’t lead with your shoulders. You want to avoid twisting at the hips to put your item down. Instead, use your feet to change directions to turn in a small circle so that your body is facing where the object needs to go.
• Keep your shoulders over your hips.
• Use your leg muscles to place the object down. Slowly lower into a squat to place it down. Don’t bend from the hips to put it down.

To summarize:
• Avoid carrying heavy objects long distances. If the object is too heavy for you to lift by yourself, get help from another person. If no one is around, push it to where you want it to go.
• Avoid twisting and bending at the waist.
• Keep your core muscles strong.
• Don’t forget to breathe.
• Use your leg muscles to perform the lift and not your back muscles.