In the twenty-first century, the vast majority of society suffers from poor posture. Whether its rounded shoulders and a forward head tilt, or tight hip flexors and a chronically arched back, our posterior chain suffers the most. We train it to sit in a deactivated state all day and once we need it to lift properly, our core does not know how to fire as a unit, increasing the likelihood of injury. So what do we do? We lift with our legs, not our back; we use our squat mechanics to decrease the “pressure” put on the back.
Lifting with your legs means utilizing your entire lower body to effectively pick up a weight or an object. Lifting with your legs means generating force through your hips and your knees together to absorb the weight. Lifting with your legs means allowing your back and your entire core to stabilize to support the agonist and antagonist muscles of your legs. When lifting with your legs, the most effective technique to use is the hip hinge. This utilizes your posterior chain and your pulling mechanics to generate force. This results in stronger glutes, hamstrings, and lower back muscles. Yes, this means you WILL feel your lower back, but in a strengthening capacity.
Finally, your back is a muscle group, and one of the strongest muscle groups in the body at that. Muscles get sore when they are worked hard. Do not avoid “lifting with your back” out of fear of soreness. The only way to prevent back injuries is to train your back and your hip musculature. The hip hinge is the most effective way of preventing injuries and in developing the most cohesive body. Next time you deadlift, row, or clean, don’t lift with your legs, lift with your back.
