How to Pick Up Weights Properly: Tips From a Trainer
If you’ve started practicing from a home gym, you might not have anyone to keep an eye on your form while you’re lifting weights, whether you’re doing Kettlebell Squats or Dumbbell Curls. Alo Moves fitness instructor and personal trainer Roxie Jones has some handy do’s and don’ts for picking up not just weights, but anything, from your kids to groceries.
These tips become more and more essential the heavier you go, but they’re still important for lighter weights, too. When you look out for your body, you’ll lessen the risk of injuries so you can keep on lifting without sidelining yourself.
Do:
Make sure you keep tension throughout your entire body when picking up things — squeeze all of your muscles!
Cup your hands around the top when using a dumbbell, like when you’re in a weighted Goblet Squat.
“Break the handle in half” when using a kettlebell: Pack your shoulders down and squeeze your lats to get more core engagement, as if breaking something in half.
Hinge at your hips and bend your knees, drive your feet through the floor, and pull the weight towards your heart.
Don’t:
Round your back on the way down or up.
Pick up the weight from the very bottom of a squat.
Pick up the weight too slowly.
Want to sweat with Roxie? Use your newfound lifting expertise in her brand-new Total Body Training series, available with a 14-day free trial to Alo Moves.