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Is "Lift With Your Legs" Good Advice? The Newest Research Might Surprise You!

Raise your hand if you were taught that the best, safest way to lift something up off the floor is “with your legs” and not “with your back”!

This has been the most common lifting advice for ages, but did you know that the newest research doesn’t support this longstanding notion?!

When we lift something off the floor, there are two main ways that are categorized in the research: a squat or a stoop.

In a squat, we use the greatest knee bend and a relatively upright torso:

In a stoop, we use minimal knee bend and a rounded spine:

(Note: There are also a range of other lifting variations that fall between these two extremes!)

The squat is the quintessential “lift with your legs” technique, while the stoop is the classic “lift with your back” strategy, which we’re generally warned not to perform:

So is "lift with your legs and not with your back" good advice? Is rounding your spine when lifting bad?

Despite the fact that we've all been taught this familiar advice, this no longer seems to be the evidence-based approach to lifting technique. Can you believe it??

Here are insights from current research on lifting technique:

Although the squat is the most commonly advised lifting technique, research doesn’t actually support the claim that lifting in this alignment prevents low back pain (Washmuth et al., 2022).

In addition, research also suggests that stoop lifting is not a risk factor for low back pain (Washmuth et al., 2022).

That’s right – lifting “with your back” doesn't seem to increase your risk of experiencing back pain!

Research has also shown that stoop lifting is more metabolically efficient than squat lifting (Washmuth et al., 2022).

And another study found that lifting with a rounded spine is more biomechanically efficient than lifting with a “flat back” (Mawston et al., 2021).

Ultimately, it’s NOT the case that squat lifting loads the spine a safe amount while stoop lifting loads the spine too much and is injurious.

Instead, both squat and stoop lifting load the spine – but they do so in different ways.

Squat lifting involves more compressive loads on the spine while stoop lifting involves more shear loads (von Arx et al., 2021):

Which type of load is best for each person’s spine simply depends on their unique loading history, current capacity, and goals in the moment.

In the end, there's certainly nothing wrong with lifting objects off the floor "with your legs." But what can be a concern is having the belief that this is the best, safest, and only way to lift.

This is because when individuals have a greater fragility belief about their back, this may actually make them more vulnerable to injury – due to the multifactorial, biopsychosocial nature of injury and pain!

A Rounded Spine vs. a Flat Back in Yoga

Just like with lifting, we often hear strong opinions in the yoga world about the "correct" or "optimal" position of the spine in standing or seated forward folds.

Many cues warn that rounding (a.k.a. flexing) the spine is injurious and that we should always maintain a “flat back” or “neutral spine” in these poses.

The truth is, not only is maintaining a neutral spine in a forward fold impossible (our spine naturally moves into some degree of flexion at the vertebral level whenever we fold forward (Howe & Lehman 2021)), but rounding the spine is not inherently injurious.

Instead of thinking of rounding as something to avoid, we can simply decide whether to intentionally round or not based on our goals in the pose.

• If we aim to keep a “neutral spine,” our forward fold will emphasize the hamstring stretch.

• If we allow our back to round, we’ll also stretch the spinal extensors, creating more of a full back-body stretch.

Neither variation is right or wrong – both are valid options. Instead of rigid yoga alignment rules, we can focus on intentional choices that serve our movement goals in the moment!

References:

Howe, Louis, and Greg Lehman. "Getting out of neutral: the risks and rewards of lumbar spine flexion during lifting exercises." Strength and Conditioning 3 (2021): 1-38.

Mawston, Grant, et al. "Flexed lumbar spine postures are associated with greater strength and efficiency than lordotic postures during a maximal lift in pain-free individuals." Gait & Posture 86 (2021): 245-250.

Washmuth, Nicholas B., Abby D. McAfee, and C. Scott Bickel. "Lifting techniques: why are we not using evidence to optimize movement?." International Journal of Sports Physical Therapy17.1 (2022): 104.

Related: Video on a Rounded Spine vs. a Flat Back (“Neutral Spine”) in Yoga Forward Folds

Here’s a quick video I created a few years ago about spinal alignment in forward folds in our yoga practice. I hope you enjoy!

Related: Podcast Episode on Rounding the Spine w/ Expert Sam Spinelli, DPT, CSCS

Listen to episode 28 of the Yoga Meets Movement Science podcast for a full discussion on this topic with our expert, Dr. Sam Spinelli!

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