Heavy Lifting: A New Mom's Guide for Avoiding Injury

Don't: Do the twisted car seat lift. Worst-case scenario: With both your feet on the ground, you twist and lean into the car seat with your arms extended, your toddler at the end of them. Lifting your toddler that way can do a number on your knees, lower back, neck, shoulders, elbows, and wrists.

Do: Put one leg into the car and face the car seat as you're putting your child in it, recommends Traci O'Hara, a physical therapist at Englewood Hospital and Medical Center in Bergen County, New Jersey. You'll take pressure off your back. If the car seat is in the middle of the back seat, climb in and face the car seat as you lift your child into it.

While positioning yourself properly can take a few extra seconds with a feisty toddler in tow, "it doesn't have to be perfect all the time," says Dalton. "But the more often you lift correctly, the better you're able to tolerate it when you don't," she says.