We are told to “bend at the knees” when we lift things all the time. We know it is the safest and best way to do it, but in haste we often bend at the waist, then lift, then pay the price. I recently tried to pick up a heavy box, not bending at the knees of course. Even though I immediately set it down the damage was done. A trip to the emergency room, which allowed me to donate a $300 copay to the hospital, led me to a diagnoses of a strained hip flexor. I didn’t even know I had a hip flexor, much less that an injury to it could lead to pain worse than childbirth. When I was leaving the emergency room the PA said, “Bend at the knees next time.” I would have kicked him in the shin, but apparently an injury to your hip flexor makes that difficult. Continue reading →