Thought Bytes...
April 2003

Alternative Lifting Strategies #1

Almost every worker, at some time, has attended a lifting course where they were taught to lift with a straight back. The training involved lifting a perfect box with handles or hand holds on the sides and a nice even load inside. The worker stepped up to the box with his / her feet about shoulder width apart. While keeping the shoulders over the knees and the back straight, the worker crouched down to pick up the box and then lift it to waist level in a standing position.

And then what? Well, that's as far as the instruction went. No mention of the fact that the box had to be put into the trunk of the car or onto an upper shelf. And using those instructions to get the turkey out of the bottom of the freezer or child out of the playpen is useless.

So, let's go back to basic principles and weight lifters.

First, you will never see a lifter using a flexed back. They always keep the lumbar curve. This stacks the vertebrae and disks so that the pressure distribution is equal. It also makes the best use of the muscles because the fibre length is optimized.

Second, weight lifters always bend their knees. Even slight knee flexion will recruit the large muscles of the hamstrings, gluteal and quadriceps groups. These muscles are designed exclusively for bending and opening the knees and hips - elevating and lowering the body. This compares to the dozens of smaller muscles of the back, each of which is responsible for subtle control of specific postural movements.

So, the principles are: keep the natural curve in the lower back and bend the knees. This isn't all that much different than the industrial straight back lift previously mentioned. The difference is that it presents principles, not rules. Passive aggressive people like me can use principles, but hate rules. We look for ways to break the rules and get away with it.

When I teach lifting, I put these two principles together into what is called the "Butt Out" technique. Simply put, stick your butt out when you lift. This will help keep the natural curve in the low back and will force you to bend your knees a bit. As said, even a slight bend at the knee will recruit the leg muscles.

This even works if you have to pick up loads from floor level (i.e. boxes without handles). Start on one knee, proposal style. Bend forward at the hips to hook your fingers around the bottom of the box. Subtly stick your butt out. This will bring the back muscles into a better length so that they are stronger - they can do more work with less effort. Keep the natural curve in your back as you lift the box onto the bended knee. This will see you un-flex the hip and then lift a bit with your arms. Then use your leg muscles to raise to a standing position.

Whenever you are lifting also keep a few other basic principles in mind:

Keep a firm abdomen. This doesn't mean sucking your stomach back to your spine! More like tightening up to move things through (if you know what I mean).

Don't hold your breath. This only increases your blood pressure. Try taking a deep breath before you start the lift and slowly let it out during the lift.

Get a grip. Make sure you have a good grip with your feet on the floor and with your hands on the object you are lifting. Many back injuries could have been prevented by not loosing your footing and having a good set of hand holds.

Keep things in balance. Try to keep boxes evenly balanced and make sure the contents can't suddenly shift. This will help avoid sudden muscle contractions to control the load.

Next Month:

Alternative lifting strategies #2: The golfers lift and getting the turkey out of the freezer.

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