[VIDEO] Tips for Safe, Everyday Lifting

OH&S safe lifting principles shouldn't be contained to the workplace

Lifting is a part of everyday life therefore the prinicples you're taught in the workplace should not stay at work.

If you need to know one thing about lifting anything - groceries from the car, your child out the bath, heavy items off the floor - follow Jason's number one tip featured in the video below. 

Back In Motion partners with Regal Sleep Solutions to present this health and wellness series linking to Back In Motion found and physio, Jason T Smith's best-selling book, Get Yourself Back In Motion.

Check out other instructional videos on our YouTube channel.

Transcript: Tips for Safe, Everyday Lifting

Let's talk about lifting. I know most people would rather pour lemon juice over open paper cuts than go through OH&S principles. And yet, lifting is a part of everyday life, whether it's taking your little one out of the cot in the morning, or the activities you do during the day at work, or even getting groceries out of the boot of your car. Lifting is a big part of everybody's day, and 27% of all injuries across Australia occur because we are not safe with our lifting.

So some really practical advice is firstly, assess your environment. Make sure that you are capable of the lift that you are about to do. Get help if you can. And otherwise, use good footwear; a wide base of support; use the weight and strength of your legs to bear the load; and most importantly, do not bend and twist at the same time. The moment you do that, you are corkscrewing the disc in the lower back, and that can lead to some really serious injury. So safe lifting is important for everybody who wants to enjoy optimal, lifelong health.