Here's my informative! I received an A- on this paper.
Do
you actually know how to properly lift something heavy up off the
floor? There is a pretty good chance that you do not. Alison Smith, a
chiropractor, referring to Americans, states, "Eighty percent of back
injuries could have been prevented if they had known how to do the
proper lifting techniques. But statistics indicate the average American
has not the foggiest idea how to prevent back problems..." (Smith). From
this information we can conclude that the most common cause for back
injuries is lifting improperly. I will explain to you how to lift things
up the right way.
Before
we even get into describing how to lift things up, let me explain the
difference between an arched and a curved back. The “S” shape of your
spine is its natural curvature (Smith). When you make a “S” shape in
your back while standing or sitting that is an arched back. The natural
“S” in your back can be used interchangeably with a “straight back”.
When you make a “C” shape with back, it is curved, which can develop
from bad posture and laziness. Obviously, these examples are a bit
exaggerated, but you can get the gist of it.
Lifting
something up can depend on the object’s weight, but it is best just to
always use proper lifting technique. If it is something light, like a
sock or a notebook, then lifting it up with improper form is not all
that bad, but it would not be all that good either, especially if you
make a habit of it. Breaking the habit of lifting things up the wrong
way is very difficult. Believe me, I am still breaking my bad habits. To
break your bad habit, I recommend always trying to use good lifting
form, even for your socks. To prevent injury when you are lifting up
something heavy, like a TV, a loaded barbell or a couch, you better be
using proper lifting technique. Always trying to keep good posture will
improve the muscle memory in your back, eventually making good posture a
habit, not a chore. Once good posture is a habit, it will be less
likely that you will slip out of good lifting technique and injure your
back.
How
do you use good, strict form? Let me explain. Remember that you must
maintain the natural arch in your back. Maintaining the proper “S” in
the back is the most important factor when lifting, according to Alison
Smith. To get low enough to lift something you will have to bend at your
knees, hips, and a little bit in your ankles. From there, grab the
object and push through your legs to lift it up. That is the basics of
lifting things up.
You
might be wondering how to hold the arch of your back. If you have a
poor muscle-mind connection with your back muscles this could be
difficult. A good way to help maintain your arched back is to tense the
muscles in the lower back, suck in your gut, and lock your shoulders
back. To lock your shoulders in the right position just roll your
shoulders back and down and tense the muscles you feel being used, this
will engage and tighten your upper back muscles. Do all of the above
while lifting, and you should be able to maintain the arch of your back.
Be aware that if you have tight hamstrings, your hamstrings will pull
your lower back down, making your spine curve.
As
I told you already, the most important thing when lifting to is keeping
your back straight. Keeping a straight back may be the most important
part of lifting, but there is more to it. You should have figured out by
now that if you are going to bend down without curving your spine you
need use your legs. There is a wrong and a right way to use your legs.
As a kid I was told to “lift with my knees”, but that puts the wrong
image in my mind. Granted, it is better than lifting with only my back,
but when I hear “lift with your knees” I think of someone bending mainly
the knees and the ankles. If you do squat down with that form, your
knees will travel past your toes, putting most the of stress from the
weight in your knees.
If
mainly bending at the knees and ankles puts too much stress on your
knees and bending in the lower back puts too much stress in your lower
back, how do you lift properly? You must bend at the hips as well.
Actually, you should bend almost exactly the same amount as you do in
your hips as you bend in your knees. When you bend too much in the
ankles and the knees, the stress from your body weight and the object
you are picking up are transferred to your knee tendons. Doing so will
cause knee pain and eventually knee injury. On the other hand, bending
more in your hips will transfer the stress on the knee tendon to your
gluteus maximus (your butt). The gluteus maximus is much stronger than
your knee tendons, so the gluteus maximus would not get injured from a
heavy load. A good cue to use the right amount of hip movement is to
push your butt out as you bend down to lift the object. You might look
weird, but your knees and spine will thank you later. If
you are still having trouble not letting your knees travel past your
toes, try pushing through your heels instead of the balls of your feet.
It
is nearly impossible to keep your back straight while not letting your
knees travel past your toes if you have a narrow stance. When you are
lifting something heavy, you will need to have a slightly wider than
shoulder width stance to keep good lifting technique. Doing so will also
give you more power to lift heavier objects with more ease.
When
you pick something up, you will have to put it down eventually. All you
have to do is the same exact thing as your did when lifting, but in
reverse. Simple? Yes, it really is simple this time.
A
good way to teach yourself good lifting mechanics is to work on
deadlifting. The deadlift is a full body exercise. It teaches proper
lifting technique while giving you immense strength. The basics of
lifting apply to deadlifting, but describing exact deadlifting form is
another, longer topic. One lesson I learned from deadlifting that I can
share with you is when lifting heavy objects you must keep the weight
close to you as possible. The farther away the object is, the less
leverage you have, and more strain is placed on your lower back. If you
lift things up in your life, I highly recommend you learn to deadlift.
You might think you can not deadlift because you have had a back injury.
Of course you should check with your doctor first, but Henderson (now a
powerlifter) had a back injury when he was 19 years old and now does
some serious deadlifting (Thew). Thew also says that weight lifting
(specifically deadlifting) improved Henderson’s life.
Remember
when lifting something up, keep your back straight, use your legs to
lift, do not allow your knees to travel past your toes. Repeat that
process in the reverse direction to put the object down. Finally,
remember it is probably a pretty good idea to learn deadlifting
technique.
Works Cited
Smith, Alison. "SPINAL ACCORD // Chiropractors Take Firm Posture on Prevention of Back
Injuries." Austin American Statesman: 1. Jun 06 1989. ProQuest Central; ProQuest Newsstand. Web. 15 Oct. 2012.
Thew, Chris C. "Lifting His Way Out of Abyss ; Champion Powerlifter Henderson Lived with
Back Pain; Until He Discovered Healing Power of Weights." Spokesman Review: 0. Jan 18 2002. ProQuest Central; ProQuest Newsstand. Web. 15 Oct. 2012.
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