Plainville Back Pain-Preventing Lifting Techniques
Lifting something off the ground seems like a simple task for most folks. It’s one we do every day mostly without hesitation. Clients at Layden Chiropractic share these kinds of stories daily about how hard it is to pick something up off the ground or how picking up a simple pencil up off the ground triggered the worst back pain. Our Plainville chiropractic patients tell us stories like this! Strengthening the quads with exercise as part of our chiropractic services, and lifting slowly and with a few tips in mind can help minimize stress on the low back.
LIFTING TECHNIQUES
When it comes to posture, lifting is a known risk factor for low back pain. Lifting techniques like the stoop/lifting with the back, squat/lifting with the legs, and semi-squat/a mix of the other two are well-documented. Squat lifting seems to be the one most report is optimal. One group of researchers stated some odd findings though: squat lift training did not prevent low back pain and stoop lifting isn’t a risk factor for low back pain. How do these two findings reckon with proper lifting for back pain prevention and management? They suggested that the lifting posture that is proper for each person must be individualized as each lifting posture offers its own biomechanical and kinematic patterns for muscle activation which make particular lifting postures better for particular patients. Researchers described that stoop lifting was more metabolically efficient and less challenging to the cardiopulmonary system. This set of researchers further suggested working with each individual client on the proper lifting technique suitable for his/her body and lifting situation following the “calm tissue down, build tissue up, improve work capacity” system. (1) Layden Chiropractic usually looks at each of our Plainville chiropractic patients and offers ideas on managing and preventing back pain with exercise and other approaches.
A COUPLE TIPS ON LIFTING
There are some tips-and-tricks that may help us all when lifting. A special lifting trick referred to as BATT (a braced arm to thigh, one-handed lifting method to retrieve objects with the dominant hand) substantially reduced low back loading while lifting items of 2 to 10 kg. Trunk flexion angles were significantly reduced. Compressive and anterior-posterior shear forces were significantly lower too compared with unsupported lifting techniques. (2) That is an easy lifting tip we know our Plainville chiropractic clients|we can all do! Lifting slowly is another idea that reportedly lowered loads on the lumbar spinal elements. Stoop lifting had a greater lumbar spine lordosis range of motion and produced lower total and compressive lumbar loads than squat lifting (except at L5S1 where anterior shear loads were greater) and freestyle lifting. (3) So slow down when lifting. Use your quads to squat lift. (If they’re not very strong, Layden Chiropractic has some exercises to strength them!)
CONTACT Layden Chiropractic
Listen to this PODCAST with Dr. Tyler Lomnicki on The Back Doctors Podcast with Dr. Michael Johnson as he describes treatment of a man with a disc herniation among other issues for which The Cox® Technic System of Spinal Pain Management of spinal manipulation assisted in his relief.
Schedule your Plainville chiropractic appointment with Layden Chiropractic today. When effortless tasks like lifting objects off the floor become difficult, know that Layden Chiropractic is available to help find a way to make them better and troublefree for you and your spine!
