The Carrying Season: How Holiday Bags, Shopping, and Lifting Gifts Affect Your Back

Why this time of year leads to more shoulder, neck, and low-back tension — and how massage can help.

The holidays bring joy, celebration, and… a surprising amount of lifting. From shopping bags to gift boxes to overloaded grocery hauls, this season earns its title as “the carrying season.” And even if you don’t realize it in the moment, these small, repeated physical stresses can lead to back pain, tight shoulders, and that familiar “knot” between the shoulder blades.

Here’s how everyday holiday habits impact your body — and what you can do to protect your back.

1. Heavy Shopping Bags = Shoulder + Neck Tension

If you’ve ever walked around a mall with multiple bags on one arm, you’ve probably felt that deep ache by the end of the day.

Carrying weight on one side pulls your body off-center.Your upper traps, levator scapulae, and neck muscles kick into overdrive to keep you upright. Over time, this leads to:

• Tight shoulders

• Neck stiffness

• Headaches

• Reduced mobility when turning your head

How massage helps:Massage reduces overactive muscle tension, improves blood flow, and releases the compensations your body forms from uneven carrying.

Quick tip:Alternate arms or use a crossbody bag that distributes weight more evenly.

2. Lifting Gifts = Low-Back Strain

Whether it’s lifting shipped boxes off your porch or hauling wrapped gifts from your trunk, the movement is the same: you bend, reach, twist… and your low back does most of the work.

During the holidays, people often rush, lift with poor form, and ignore fatigue.This can lead to:

• Low-back tightness

• Achy hips

• Glute and hamstring stiffness

• Sharp “grabbing” pain when bending forward

How massage helps:Massage releases tight hip flexors, glutes, and paraspinals — the muscles that protect (and often overwork) when lifting frequently.

Quick tip:Bring items close to your body before standing. Avoid twisting while carrying.

3. Grocery Hauls and Meal Prep = Upper-Body Fatigue

Holiday cooking means bigger grocery runs, more heavy bags, and long hours prepping food.

That combination contributes to:

• Mid-back fatigue

• Tenderness between the shoulder blades

• Forearm tightness

• Grip strain

How massage helps:Massage restores mobility to overworked upper-back muscles and improves circulation to the forearms and hands — areas often overlooked but heavily used this time of year.

Quick tip:Make multiple lighter trips from the car instead of carrying everything at once.

4. Travel Bags = Everything From Shoulders to Feet

Suitcases, duffel bags, boarding lines, and sitting for long periods create a perfect storm of tension.

You may notice:

• Tight hip flexors

• Shoulder and neck tension

• Mid-back stiffness from pulling luggage

• Foot and calf fatigue

How massage helps:A session before or after travel reduces stiffness, improves posture, and helps reset the body from cramped seating and heavy lifting.

Quick tip:Choose rolling luggage whenever possible — and switch hands often.

5. What Massage Does for a Busy Holiday Body

This season can be physically demanding in ways that sneak up on people. Consistent massage can help you:

• Reduce accumulated tension

• Improve mobility during a busy schedule

• Decrease headache frequency

• Support better posture and lifting mechanics

• Prevent small strains from turning into bigger issues

Massage isn’t just a luxury during the holidays — it’s practical body maintenance when life gets heavier (literally).

Your body works hard this time of year, even during the fun parts. If you're noticing tight shoulders, a sore back, or fatigue from all the lifting and carrying, massage can help you reset and move through the holidays comfortably.