Techniques To Help You Avoid Injuries On Moving Day

A moving day can be busy and arduous enough without running into complications, so it's important that you always take precautions to keep yourself safe and healthy during the big day. Over the course of several hours, you'll be lifting countless pounds of furniture, boxes and other heavy items that could strain your body or, in the worst-case scenario, leave you with an acute injury that requires emergency medical care. You can take steps to reduce the risk of such issues occurring on your moving day by taking the following safety precautions.

Stretch Before The Move Begins

While you might be in a hurry to start making some progress on your move, it's beneficial to take a little time to limber up your body before you get busy. There are many different stretches that you can perform, but it's especially valuable to stretch your back muscles, given the strain that these muscles will be under when you lift heavy items. An effective stretch is to sit on the floor with your legs out in front of you angled like an A, and then begin bending your head and spine forward.

Lift With Your Legs

Even if you know that it's important to lift heavy loads with your legs instead of with your back, it's easy to forget this habit when you're busy working. Ensure that you remember it with each lift by focusing on always bending your knees when you reach down to pick something up – even if you have to bend in an exaggerated fashion, it can remind you that your legs should be the main muscles that do the work.

Don't Try To Be A Hero

It can be tempting to grab extremely heavy objects and attempt to move them by yourself in an effort to speed up the moving process, but this risky behavior can quickly lead to an injury that ends up derailing your progress. Try to avoid lifting heavy things alone – always involve a friend who can help you. And, if you don't have enough strong friends available to lend assistance, think about hiring a professional moving crew to take care of the job. A company like Advanced Movers would be happy to help.

Keep Passageways Clear

During a move, the home can quickly get cluttered with boxes and other objects, but it's important to make a rule about keeping passageways – the hall, the front walkway – clear at all times. When you're carrying a heavy load, you don't want to have to always be looking down for obstructions that might trip you and cause a serious injury.