IMPROVE YOUR POSTURE

How your posture looks today is a result of years of activity. Over time, the stress of poor posture can change the anatomical characteristics of the spine, leading to the possibility of constricted blood vessels and nerves, as well as problems with muscles, discs, and joints.

If you are a tall person, you might have slouched to avoid attention when in a group or while sitting in a class. In an exactly opposite situation a shorter person could have overstretched himself to look taller, resulting in a poor posture. And, of course, most of us spend hours every day sitting at a desk where it's all too easy to let your posture slip. Over a period of time such habits have a long lasting impact upon how our posture shapes out. Inculcating the correct habits can go a long way in avoiding chronic pains associated with poor posture.

The very first step in improving your posture is getting to know what exactly you might be doing wrong while you stand, sit, or walk. The best approach towards understanding whether your posture is healthy is to observe yourself while you walk. Focus on the body movements from the head to toe.

Make a mental note of posture and back support. This will help you identify the time and locations that tend to result in poor posture. A healthy posture is denoted by easy grace of walking while an unhealthy posture would look labored and disconnected. For some people, asking others to observe them while walking or sitting helps. Another way to check your posture is standing sideways in front of a mirror like you normally do can help reveal a lot about your posture.

The Dos and Don't s of Maintaining a Good Posture

While Sitting - For people whose work involves sitting at a computer for several hours, it is imperative to cultivate healthy sitting habits. The spine is not designed to bear prolonged loads of weight in a static position, and this can cause future complications to the spinal column to develop.
When you sit on a chair, your lower back or the lumbar region of your spinal cord should get optimum support. This would help maintain a good posture and avoid lower back ache in the long run.


 

Try to keep the top of the screen at an eye level, while making sure that both the arms and the wrists are properly supported by the chair and the table, while the head is resting back on the chair.





While Standing - A lot of people have the habit of keeping their hands in pocket while standing. Gradually this leads to slouching shoulders, since while standing the proper way to maintain a good posture is to keep the hands by the side of the body. Keep some distance between your feet so that they align with your shoulder. To get an idea about how you are doing, stand against a wall. For most people everything except the head would touch the wall. This means you have a scope of improvement there. Try and inculcate the habit of standing with your shoulders upright, which would help the head line up with the spinal cord.

While sleeping – Using a relatively firm mattress is a good idea, since it provides a better support to the body while sleeping.
Sleeping on the back, instead of side can help improve your posture, since while sleeping on back, the spinal cord gets complete support from the bed and the shoulders line up perfectly with the body.
Which kind of pillow you use is an individual preference, but a flat pillow is better if you sleep on back most of the time and the opposite is true of you sleep on the side.
You can also place one or more pillows below your knees when sleeping on the back to reduce strain on lower lumbar region.

Exercising – Getting up regularly from your chair or stretching in regular intervals can help relive the muscle fatigue. People who exercise regularly generally have a better posture than the ones who prefer sitting in one place for long period of time.
So try and include an exercise schedule of 15-30 minutes in your daily schedule. Exercising your back and abs will yield great results eventually.

Extreme Posture Makeover

So you are unhappy with your posture and want to try out something that gives faster results? Well there are a couple of things you can do.

1. You can use a duct tape or something similar and create a X mark on your back. Stand up straight with shoulders upright and ask someone to stick the tape from top of your right shoulder to the left hip, do the same from the right shoulder. This tape will remind you whenever you slouch and help you maintain a healthy posture. Not such a good ideas for guys with hairy backs, Ouch. You guys can try out this 2nd tip.
2. For people who are serious about getting their posture right, using Posture braces is a good idea. They are generally a "Firm" reminder that you are getting sloppy and you need to stand up or sit straight. It might be uncomfortable in the beginning, but it will help you in the long run.

As mentioned above, you can take any route for a better posture once you identify the flaws—if any—in your posture. Going slow and developing healthy habits is the right way to go, but if that doesn't work out well you can always take the extreme route.

Hope that helps!

Bad Posture Back Pain

Having good posture is a simple but very important way to keep the many intricate structures in the back and spine healthy. It’s much more than cosmetic – good posture and back support are critical to reducing the incidence and levels of back pain  and neck pain. Back support is especially important for patients who spend many hours sitting in an office chair or standing throughout the day. Posture is the way you hold your body while standing, sitting or performing tasks like lifting, bending, pulling or reaching. If your posture is good, the bones of the spine — the vertebrae — are correctly aligned. The back has three natural curves: a slight forward curve in the neck (cervical curve), a slight backward curve in the upper back (thoracic curve) and a slight forward curve in the low back (lumbar curve). When these curves are in proper alignment, the spine, shoulders, hips, knees, and ankles are in balance, and body weight is evenly distributed. The payoff is less stress and strain on muscles, joints, and ligaments, and a reduced risk for back, neck, and shoulder pain. 

Over time, the stress of poor posture can change the anatomical characteristics of the spine, leading to the possibility of constricted blood vessels and nerves, as well as problems with muscles, discs, and joints. All of these can be major contributors to back and neck pain, as well as headaches, fatigue, and possibly even concerns with major organs and breathing. Poor posture—while sitting, standing, lying down or moving around—is a major cause of back pain . Sitting and standing put considerable pressure on the lower back —in fact, standing exerts up to five times more pressure than lying down, and sitting is even more strenuous. Basically, having correct posture means keeping each part of the body in alignment with the neighboring parts. Proper posture keeps all parts balanced and supported. With appropriate posture (when standing) it should be possible to draw a straight line from the earlobe, through the shoulder, hip, knee, and into the middle of the ankle. 

People may find themselves in several positions throughout the day (sitting, standing, bending, stooping and lying down) it’s important to learn how to attain and keep correct posture in each position for good back support, which will result in less back pain. When moving from one position to another, the ideal situation is that one’s posture is adjusted smoothly and fluidly. After initial correction of bad posture habits, these movements tend to become automatic and require very little effort to maintain. Maintaining good posture involves training your body to move and function where the least strain is placed on bones, joints and soft tissues. 

Recognize The Symptoms of Bad Posture.

To help evaluate your posture, look at yourself in a full-length mirror. The classic signs of poor posture are a potbelly, rounded shoulders, and a jutted-out neck and chin (known as a forward head position). Other signs of poor posture include slumped or protruding abdomen, excessive curve in the lower back  (swayback) and a caved-in appearance to the chest, as well as back and neck pain and headaches.

4 Steps To Good Posture

You can improve your posture by practicing some imagery and a few easy and quick exercises.

• Imagery. Think of a straight line passing through your body from ceiling to floor (your ears, shoulders, hips, knees, and ankles should be even and line up vertically). Now imagine that a strong cord attached to your breastbone is pulling your chest and rib cage upward, making you taller.
• Chin tuck. Sit comfortably in a chair with your feet flat on the floor. Keep your shoulders relaxed and down. Hold your head upright. Pull your chin in toward your neck.
• Abdominal pull-in. Stand or sit. Inhale; then exhale slowly to a count of five, pulling your lower abdominal muscles up and in, as if moving your belly button toward your backbone.
• Shoulder blade squeeze. Sit up straight in a chair with your hands resting on your thighs. Keep your shoulders down and your chin level. Slowly draw your shoulders back and squeeze your shoulder blades together.
• Upper-body stretch. Stand facing a corner with your arms raised, hands flat against the walls, elbows at shoulder height. Place one foot ahead of the other. Bending your forward knee, exhale as you lean your body toward the corner. Keep your back straight and your chest and head up.

What Good Posture Can Do For You

• Optimize breathing and circulation
• Maintain the bones and joints in the correct alignment so that muscles  are being used properly and efficiently
• Helps reduce or prevent the abnormal wearing of joint surfaces that could result in degenerative diseases 
• Decrease the stress on the soft tissues, such as ligaments, muscles, tendons and discs
• Prevent fatigue because muscles are being used more efficiently, allowing the body to use less energy
• Prevent the spine from becoming fixed in abnormal positions
• Prevent postural strain or overuse problems
• Prevent muscle fatigue
• Contributes to a healthy image or appearance
• Improves organ function
• Reduces tension and pain in neck , shoulders and back
• Increases concentration and mental performance
• Prevents humped shoulders
• Increases height
• Prevents “pot belly”
• Increased confidence

More Tips For Maintaining Good Posture

Many simple lifestyle changes can help improve your posture and reduce back pain 

• Be mindful of your posture throughout the day, and realign yourself regularly.
• To prevent muscle fatigue, avoid staying in one position for a long time.
• When standing for long periods try resting one foot on a low ledge, stool, or box.
• If you prefer slow, gentle, physical activity, try t’ai chi or aquatic exercises to improve your posture, strength, and balance.
• Maintain a healthy body weight.
• Wear comfortable shoes that offer good support.
• Hold reading material at eye level.
• Sleep on a firm, comfortable mattress.
• Exercise regularly to promote strong abdominal and back muscles.
• If you have any concerns about your posture, consider a session with a physical therapist trained to evaluate posture.

By continuing to have bad posture, you open yourself up to a whirlwind of problems. Our spines were meant to be in a certain order with certain curves in certain directions. Our joints are constructed in a certain manner to allow us to function as best as we can. Most of what we do makes us crouch forward into this fetal position (ie. driving, texting, playing video games, typing on the computer, etc.) which over stretches most of our back muscles and tightens and shortens most of our front muscles. This makes that posture best designed for optimum function to lack, which causes degeneration within our bodies.  Remind yourself to fix your posture, and you will begin to reteach your body how to hold itself. If you’re sitting, sit up straight. If it hurts after 5 minutes, keep doing it. Remind yourself to do it as much as you can. The main reason it hurts is because you’re not used to it. By continuing to sit and stand in better posture, you will strengthen the muscles that have been weakened by years of malpractice.