How to hinge at the hips to lift safely
A hip hinge is bending forward by pushing your hips back while your back stays long and your knees stay softly bent, the way you would close a car door with your backside while holding groceries. Your shins stay nearly upright and you feel a stretch in the back of your thighs. It is the shape to learn before lifting anything heavy from low down.
Why it matters: The hip hinge is the movement behind every safe lift from the floor, from a laundry basket to a suitcase.
Steps
- Stand tall with feet hip width apart and a slight bend in both knees.
- Hold a broom handle along your spine so it touches the back of your head, your upper back and your tailbone.
- Push your hips straight back, as if closing a door behind you with them.
- Let your chest tip forward only as far as your hips travel back, keeping all three points on the handle.
- Stop when you feel a firm stretch behind your thighs or the handle starts to lift off a point.
- Squeeze your glutes and drive your hips forward to stand tall again.
- Practice without the handle once the shape feels natural, then use it for everyday lifts.
Stop and call a professional if
- you feel pain shooting down a leg, numbness or tingling during or after the movement: stop and see your clinician or a physical therapist
- your lower back hurts sharply rather than your hamstrings feeling stretched: stop and see your clinician or a physical therapist
- you are pregnant, gave birth in the last year, or have a heart, joint, bone or pelvic floor condition: ask your clinician or a physical therapist which movements suit you first
- you feel chest pain or pressure, faintness or breathlessness far beyond the effort: stop and call your local emergency number, 911 in the US
Questions to ask the professional
- How far down should I hinge with my current flexibility?
- Which everyday lifts should I practice this on first?
Common mistakes
- Bending the knees so much that the hinge turns into a squat.
- Rounding the lower back to reach further down.
- Leaning back at the top instead of simply standing tall.
Teach this to someone
A one page sheet for showing a friend, a teenager or a parent: what to say, what to show, and one question to check it landed.
Teach: How to hinge at the hips to lift safely
What to say
A hip hinge is bending forward by pushing your hips back while your back stays long and your knees stay softly bent, the way you would close a car door with your backside while holding groceries. Your shins stay nearly upright and you feel a stretch in the back of your thighs. It is the shape to learn before lifting anything heavy from low down.
What to show
- Stand tall with feet hip width apart and a slight bend in both knees.
- Hold a broom handle along your spine so it touches the back of your head, your upper back and your tailbone.
- Push your hips straight back, as if closing a door behind you with them.
- Let your chest tip forward only as far as your hips travel back, keeping all three points on the handle.
- Stop when you feel a firm stretch behind your thighs or the handle starts to lift off a point.
- Squeeze your glutes and drive your hips forward to stand tall again.
- Practice without the handle once the shape feels natural, then use it for everyday lifts.
Where it stops
Stop and call a professional if you feel pain shooting down a leg, numbness or tingling during or after the movement: stop and see your clinician or a physical therapist.
Check question
What moves first in a hip hinge?
Answer: The hips travel back. Pushing the hips back is what keeps the back long as you tip forward.
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Quick quiz
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Related skills
Sources
- Certified exercise professional guidance on movement form, 2025. Reviewed September 28, 2026.
Written in our own words from the sources above. It is general information, not advice for your situation; where a professional, your doctor or your lease says something different, follow them.
Last reviewed . First published .