The ancient wisdom of "lift with your legs" is poor advice. Poor because it doesn't tell really tell you anything about what you should or shouldn't be doing when you "lift" something. Lift with my legs? How? What are you not supposed to lift with? Your arms? Well, if you have proper form and posture, there's nothing wrong at all with lifting with your arms. Want to row a rock up off the ground to inspect it closely? Go ahead. Want to curl a conch to your ear? Knock yourself out.
So here's what it really means: don't bend at the waist.
Bend at the hips. Keep the natural arch in your back intact (don't round it or hunch over). When you lift something really heavy, you lift with your butt and your hips and your legs. Your arms will think they participated, it's ok to let them think that. Hinge those hips, that's your lever. Protect your back. Don't bend at the waist.
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