Overhead Lifting Safety Tips

Follow these tips to protect your back, neck, knees, and shoulders.

Oct. 16, 2018

Electrical work typically involves overhead lifting. Picking up an item changes how you are supporting your center of gravity as does the subsequent series of motions to lift it overhead. Whether the item is light or heavy, performing the lift involves many muscles, joints, ligaments, and tendons. All these human components are at risk for injury.

To protect your back, neck, knees, and shoulders:

Warm up before lifting (especially if the object is heavy). For example, push your hands toward the ceiling as far as you can; hold for 10 seconds (you will feel this in your shoulders).
Ensure you are on a stable surface. You don’t want to be trying to catch your balance while lifting anything, you want to be balanced before and during the lift.
Visualize the motion before starting and ensure you’re in a straight line under the lifting path. Rotating at the waist while lifting increases the risk of back injury. Don’t rotate at the shoulders, either.

About the Author

Mark Lamendola

Mark is an expert in maintenance management, having racked up an impressive track record during his time working in the field. He also has extensive knowledge of, and practical expertise with, the National Electrical Code (NEC). Through his consulting business, he provides articles and training materials on electrical topics, specializing in making difficult subjects easy to understand and focusing on the practical aspects of electrical work.

Prior to starting his own business, Mark served as the Technical Editor on EC&M for six years, worked three years in nuclear maintenance, six years as a contract project engineer/project manager, three years as a systems engineer, and three years in plant maintenance management.

Mark earned an AAS degree from Rock Valley College, a BSEET from Columbia Pacific University, and an MBA from Lake Erie College. He’s also completed several related certifications over the years and even was formerly licensed as a Master Electrician. He is a Senior Member of the IEEE and past Chairman of the Kansas City Chapters of both the IEEE and the IEEE Computer Society. Mark also served as the program director for, a board member of, and webmaster of, the Midwest Chapter of the 7x24 Exchange. He has also held memberships with the following organizations: NETA, NFPA, International Association of Webmasters, and Institute of Certified Professional Managers.