how to get really good at picking up your dog (or child)

I have to be honest—I did not imagine that owning a dog would involve quite so much handling of her full 50lb bodyweight. I do fully pick her up like a baby to look into her eyes tell her what a beautiful princess she is every now and then. But there is also plenty of nudging and shifting of her body weight, hauling her from this side of the bed to that, gently dragging her to the door when her game of catch-me-if-you-can comes to an early end.

Let’s say someone wanted to get better at picking up their dog, their child, their parent (shoutout I Will Love You Forever). What would be the best way of going about it, from a training standpoint?