Heart rate response to two lifting techniques

Objective: To determine the heart rate response to repetitive lifting of li ght weights employing two techniques, stoop and squat. Design: Randomized cross-over trial. Participants: Twenty healthy volunteers (11 women, 9 men), mean age of 25 y ears, recruited from the staff of a physical medicine and rehabilitation de partment. Methods: Subjects lifted and lowered a box weighing 0, 1, or 3 kg, using th e stoop (bent at waist with knees straight) and squat (knees bent) techniqu es, 20 times in 1 minute. Main Outcome Measures: The heart rate was recorded every 5 seconds during t he effort and 30 seconds and 1 minute after the test. Results: Significantly higher heart rates were found during both the test a nd recuperation phases of the squat technique with each of the three loads (p < .05). The heart rate increase was also higher with the 3 kg load than with the 1 kg or 0 kg load (p = .0001). Conclusion: The heart rate is lower using the stoop technique for lifting. This may explain why individuals choose the more ergonomically risky stoop technique in everyday lifting tasks.