Lifting and protecting your back
Tips to help you protect your lower back
A lot of people tell me that they can’t reach down to pick things up without pain in their lower back. Maybe this is you, too. You might be able to bend over at the waist and reach your shoes or a pot on the lower kitchen shelf but have pain with this. You might be able to bend down by bending your knees, but then you need furniture or cabinets to get back up. Is one way better than the other? There are lots of “right” ways to lift something. Today, I am talking about lifting young children, boxes, big things, small things, heavy things, and light things while protecting your lower back and reducing your pain.
Here are my top 10 tips related to body mechanics during lifting and bending to help reduce your lower back pain and protect your spine:
1. Whatever you’re lifting, try to keep it close to you. Bring it to your center of gravity which is in the lower abdominal area to help you keep your balance and to help you keep the weight of what you are lifting centered and evenly distributed.
2. Try and use your larger glutes and thighs to help you lift the object if you are lifting something from a low surface. Your glutes and thighs are the largest muscles in your body, so use them to your advantage. If you can squat down, but you have to use your arms to help pull you back up, you may need to get some assistance from another person to lift an object from a low surface. To strengthen your glutes and thighs, practice sit to stand from a chair without using your arms to help you push up from a chair or other lower surface.
3. Ask for help if you have to move or lift something heavy. There is no shame in admitting you need help.
4. Bending over and flexing the spine to pick something up is okay unless you have osteoporosis or osteopenia which can increase the risk of spinal fractures during flexion activities. Our spines are meant to move in all directions. But, if you have osteoporosis, your spine can be more vulnerable to compression fractures when you are in a forward flexed position. In this case, bending at your hips and knees to reach down will protect your spine from fractures.
5. Try and avoid awkward positions to lift from. Bending forward and twisting is a more vulnerable position for your spine. Shifting weight more into one leg and reaching outside of your base of support puts you at added risk of injury.
6. Avoid bending, lifting and twisting simultaneously whether it’s your back or your knees. Remember, lift and then turn your body with control avoiding excessive twisting with momentum as the force behind your movement.
7. Use equipment for assistance if able. Use dollys, straps, and other mechanical equipment to help you when you can.
8. Distribute the weight you are lifting as evenly as possible although this one is hard when lifting toddlers because they like to move! If only I had half of their energy! Use both arms to assist and keep the weight in front of you, not off to the side, when lifting.
9. Speaking of toddlers, watch how they move! They have excellent movement strategies. They vary their movements throughout the day. They rest when they need to and ask for help when they need it!
10. Realize when you are fatigued and know that when you are tired, you may not be able to lift as much or as often as you can when you are well rested.
Breathe as you lift. Holding your breath increased intra-abdominal pressure on your spine and your organs which can increase your lower back pain.
And, one last thing, corsets and lumbar belts for “stabilization” aren’t effective. Rely on your own muscles for stabilizing support. Your body has its own internal corset, the transverse abdominals, that are meant to help stabilize your spine. Use them to help support your spine and your organs as you lift. Practicing tightening your core with a visible drawing inward of the belly is a good exercise to incorporate into your daily routine.
Take good care,
Sharon