(ThyBlackMan.com) When it comes to our health, there are many things we overlook. Sure, we’re told to eat well and exercise, and we do that. But, we still end up with persistent aches and pains every day. Why is this? Well, that’s what this article will look to address. I’m going to talk about one thing that’s causing all your pain and problems with your health.
As you may have guessed, the topic of discussion is posture. More importantly, how is good posture beneficial to your health? In this piece, I’ll give you the low down on all things posture. You’ll learn the correct ways to sit and stand, as well as the incorrect ways. Then, I’ll provide some tips on how you can improve your posture every day.
If you want all of this information and more, carry on reading the article below:
Good Posture vs. Bad Posture
Some people are unaware that there’s good and bad posture. It’s not something everyone tends to think about at all times, every day. The way you stand and sit doesn’t cross your mind while you’re working or walking around. However, there are many bad ways to sit/stand, and one correct way.
How To Stand With Good Posture
If you have a look at everyone waiting in line in shops, you’ll see the majority have bad posture. There are a few key elements that lead to standing with good posture. Firstly, your legs should be straight, and not bent. You’ll be surprised at how many people don’t have their legs straight, and have a slight bend in their knees. You need them to be fully extended, as it helps you stand up tall. That’s the second step here, stand up as tall as you can. Extend your thoracic spine and open your chest out. For those that don’t know, the thoracic spine refers to your middle/upper back. Your lumbar spine is the lower back, and you must keep this flat, not arched or rounded. Finally, keep your shoulders pinned back and down, with your neck back.
If you’ve never stood with good posture before, you’ll find this difficult! Also, you should feel an immediate difference in the way you feel. Good posture inspires confidence. That’s why you tend to see successful businesspeople in expensive suits walking with good posture. There’s something powerful about walking tall with your chest out; it makes you feel a lot better.
How To Sit With Good Posture
Now, we arrive at the big question; how do you sit with good posture? Many people underestimate the power of sitting. I would say that people with bad posture get that way because they’re always sitting down. Many health experts and physical therapists are screaming at people to be wary of sitting. We live in a culture that demands we sit for long periods every day. No matter who you are, a lot of your time is spent sitting. When you’re a student in school, you sit in class for hours every day. Then, you sit on the bus/train/car on your way to and from places. As you grow older, you enter the working life. As a result, you spend your time behind a desk working on a computer for eight hours a day. All of this sitting will have severe consequences on your posture. To eradicate this issue, you must learn how to sit better. First things first, ensure your legs are bent, and your feet are flat on the ground. A lot of people like to stretch their legs out in front of them, put this puts too much strain on their hamstrings. Secondly, sit with a neutral spine, draw your shoulders back and open your chest. Finally, keep your neck back and ensure you aren’t straining it forward or back too much.
What Is Bad Posture?
We’ve already established that bad posture is mostly caused by excessive sitting. When you sit, certain muscles become too tight, and others become too loose and weak. This results in all kinds or imbalances that throw your posture out of shape. I’ll look at three key areas of bad posture for you right now.
Firstly, your hips/lower back. Sitting makes your hip flexor muscles extremely tight and shortened. There’s a big muscle in your hip flexor that stars at the front of your leg and attaches to your lower back. When this tightens, it can pull on your lumbar spine. What does this mean? It means your lower back tightens easily too. And, sitting on your backside all day means your glutes get weak, as do your abs. Typically, this causes an anterior pelvic tilt. Your lower back arches and your stomach sticks out.
Next, we address your middle back/shoulders. Sitting at a desk causes people to round their shoulders forwards for long periods. Go ahead, check out your posture while you type at your computer. Your shoulders are naturally coming forward, and this damages your posture. It makes your chest muscles tight and weakens the muscles in your middle back. So, when you stand up, your shoulders are naturally rounded forward as the muscles aren’t strong enough to pull them back. This is an incredibly common posture problem; I’d say the majority of people suffer from it.
Finally, we look at your neck/head. There’s something called forward head posture, which is where your head is pointing too far forward. Again, this is because of sitting at a desk looking at a computer screen. It causes our head to drop forward, weakening the muscles in our neck that like to keep our head up properly.
It’s possible that you may have one of these issues, or all three. Most people sitting at desks incorrectly will end up with all three. It translates to their standing posture as their bodies get used to the shape they’re in while sitting. When you have bad posture, you develop so many physical health problems. Mainly, you’re in a lot of pain, all the time. If you have the first posture issue, then you’ll experience regular lower back pain. This can impact your day, and you’ll find it very hard to stand still for more that ten or fifteen minutes. If the second issue applies to you, then you’ll have upper back pain. It will feel very achy between your shoulder blades, and loads of knots will appear. Furthermore, as your shoulders are rounded, you run the risk of shoulder injuries and pain there too. Finally, you’ll get severe neck pain and could get arthritis if the final issue applies to you. As you can imagine, having all three posture problems will not be fun at all as you’ll have all this pain.
Improving Posture Every Day
No one wants all of these issues, so, what can you do to improve bad posture. Well, firstly, you have to realize it takes time to correct your body. Secondly, you must work on your posture every day, throughout the day. Think about how often you’re sitting, half an hour of posture work won’t correct eight hours of bad posture. Follow these tips to find out more:
Think About Your Posture
The main thing to think about is how you sit/stand during the day. If you make a conscious effort to assume the good posture pose, you’ll help yourself. It gets you into the correct position, and your body becomes more used to it. I recommend you use things to remind you to get into the right position. Some people use colors as a way to remember. They get it ingrained into their head to think about posture when they see a certain color. Try it; you’ll be surprised how much it works.
Take The Strain Of Tight Muscles
Another thing you should do is take the strain off tight muscles. Get a back cushion to put on your chair at work. This eases the stress on your lower back and helps you sit with better posture too. Another idea is to stand up, so, you alleviate tension in your hip flexors. You can even get standing mats to make standing more comfortable while you work. They’re easy to find; you can see one from Sky Solutions here, and many other suppliers.
Address The Muscular Imbalances
Finally, you have to address the issues that are occurring in your body. If something is tight, it needs to be stretched and released. If something is weak, it needs to be strengthened. So, stretch and release those hips and your lower back. Get your hands on a foam roller or lacrosse ball to help release tight muscles. Then, work on strengthening your glutes and abs to bring your lower back into its proper neutral position. The same applies to the other issues with your posture too. Stretch your chest out and train those muscles in your upper back. Work on those neck muscles to help pull your head back into a comfortable position. All of these things can be done throughout the day with little to no equipment. I suggest every hour or so you get up from your desk and do a few minutes of stretching/exercises. This is the best way to see results.
As you can see, posture plays a huge role in your physical health. Life can be a lot better if you have good posture. Plus, it makes you feel more confident and reduce your stress levels!
Staff Writer; Jamal Short
