How to Carry Drinks With Crutches: Practical Tips That Actually Work

Nobody warns you about the tea. You get home from hospital with a pair of crutches and a list of exercises, and within an hour you realise you cannot carry a cup of tea from the kettle to your chair. Both hands are busy holding you up.

It is one of the most common questions people ask when they first start using crutches, and it comes up again and again on forums for people recovering from surgery or living with conditions that affect their balance. So here are the tips that actually work, split into what helps on two crutches and what helps once you are down to one.

A quick note first: always follow the advice of your physiotherapist or occupational therapist on how much weight to put through your leg and when to move from two crutches to one. These tips are about carrying things safely, not about changing your recovery plan.

The honest truth about two crutches

When you are using two crutches, you do not have a free hand. Trying to hold a mug against a crutch handle, hook a bag over your wrist or tuck a bottle under your arm is how spills, burns and falls happen. The safest approach is to stop trying to carry drinks in your hands at all, and change how the drink gets to you instead.

How to carry drinks with two crutches

1. Use a lidded travel mug and a backpack

A good travel mug with a leakproof lid is the single most useful thing you can own on crutches. Make your tea, screw the lid on, pop it in a small backpack or a cross body bag and walk to your chair. Leave the drink to cool a little first, and make sure the lid is fully sealed.

2. Bring the drink to the chair, not the chair to the drink

Set up a drinks station where you spend most of your day. A flask of hot water, tea bags, a jug of water and a few clean mugs on a side table means fewer trips to the kitchen in the first place.

3. Drink in the kitchen

It sounds obvious, but a stool or chair in the kitchen means you can make a drink and enjoy it right there, with no carrying at all. Occupational therapists often suggest a perching stool for exactly this reason.

4. Use a kitchen trolley, if your OT agrees

Some people use a sturdy wheeled trolley to move drinks and meals around a flat floor. This is usually more suited to people using a walking frame than crutches, so check with your physiotherapist or OT before trying it.

5. Accept help, guilt free

If someone is home, let them carry it. Recovery is temporary, and a spilled kettle is not worth the risk.

How to carry a hot drink with crutches

Hot drinks need extra care, because a spill can burn as well as cause a fall. A few rules help:

• Only ever carry a hot drink in a sealed, lidded mug when you are on two crutches.
• Fill mugs no more than three quarters full.
• Let the drink cool for a few minutes before you move with it.
• Boil only the water you need, and consider a hot water dispenser if you will be on crutches for weeks.
• Keep the floor between the kitchen and your chair clear of rugs, bags and trailing cables.

When you are down to one crutch

Moving down to one crutch, or to a walking stick, is a big milestone because it gives you a free hand back. But one hand is not much use for carrying drinks if every step makes your tea slosh, and you still need to keep your balance.

This is where a one handed tray makes a real difference. The Topple Tray is held from above by its stainless steel handle, and the tray hangs beneath your hand and balances itself as you walk. Cups stay level, so tea and coffee stay in the mug rather than on the floor. You can carry 3 to 4 drinks, or a plate and a drink, in one trip, while your other hand stays on your crutch or stick.

• Weighs just 750g, so it is easy to lift and carry
• Full stainless steel and dishwasher safe
• Non slip neoprene mats stop cups sliding
• The handle folds flat so it stores neatly in a cupboard

It is not designed for use with two crutches, and we would never suggest letting go of a crutch to use it. But for anyone with one hand free, it turns a tricky, wobbly trip into a simple one.

If stairs are part of your route, our guide on carrying drinks up the stairs safely with one hand is worth a read too.

How to carry other things with crutches

The same ideas work for everything else you need to move around:

• Backpacks and cross body bags for your phone, book, remote and snacks.
• Clothing with zipped pockets, so small items do not fall out.
• A bottle sling or carry strap for your water bottle. Our Bottle Sling lets you wear a water bottle across your body, so you stay hydrated without needing a hand.
• A grabber tool for picking things up without bending.

Frequently asked questions

How do you carry a drink when using crutches?

On two crutches, put the drink in a sealed travel mug and carry it in a backpack or cross body bag, or set up a drinks station near your chair. On one crutch or a walking stick, a one handed tray such as the Topple Tray lets you carry drinks in your free hand without spilling.

How do you carry a hot drink with crutches?

Only carry hot drinks in a leakproof lidded mug, fill it no more than three quarters full, let it cool a little and clear your route first. Never carry an open hot drink while using two crutches.

Can I use the Topple Tray with crutches?

Yes, if you use one crutch or a walking stick and have one hand free. It is not designed for use with two crutches.

How long will I be on crutches?

That depends on your injury or surgery, so your physiotherapist or consultant is the best person to ask.

Got one hand free? Make it count. Pre-order the Topple Tray one handed tray here.