 |
We've all had that moment when we are out in public and with a quick sideways glance we catch the eye of someone that we recognize and have yet never seen quite that way. There, in whatever window or mirror caught your eye, is the full length reflection of yourself as you appear to others. The image is just short of startling. What you are so used to seeing when at home while making yourself look good is just not what other people see. Why? It's your posture.
We inherently and unconsciously know that having proper posture makes us look better - so when we are in front of the bathroom mirror we instinctively assume it. But then we walk away and forget. Out of sight out of mind. And the result is more problematic than we would imagine.
Most people today have poor posture. There are a myriad of things to be blamed, but the simple fact is that we live in a society where most of our time is spent slouched over computers, slouched on the couch, slouched.... everywhere. Go figure. This gift is a big one and will span two days. Today's part involves educating myself on the importance & effects of posture. There's a lot of info out there. I'll try to sum it up well. Here we go.
The Bad, The Worse, & The Ugly
According to the US Bureau of Labor, over 80% of Americans report suffering from back, shoulder, and neck pain. These aren't dock workers from the Roaring 20's - they're your average desk jockey. For those who don't work at a computer all day, I'm willing to bet just as many hours are spent slouched in front of some sort of screen. In short: bad posture is rampant.
There are serious risks involved with this. To understand them, you must know how the body works, but that's complicated. Here's the gist of it:
- Your brain tells your whole body what to do [i.e., keeps you alive]
- It does this by way of your Central Nervous System (CNS)
- CNS runs from the brain stem all the way through your spine
- Nerve clusters come out between each vertebrae, where the spinal discs are
- Each nerve runs to a specified organ & gives instruction
- Organs send signal back to brain via nerves to tell the brain what's going on
- The cycle continues - theoretically
Your spine is supposed to have 3 slight curves in it: at the neck; just below the shoulders; and at the lower back. Bad posture fights against these curves and takes it's toll on the discs of the spine - wearing them down until they eventually are gone. Now, remember how the nerve clusters come out where the discs are? Well, when the discs are taking a beating those nerves get caught in the crossfire. They get pinched off and can't communicate with the brain. Imagine that your brain can't communicate with the organs that keep your body functioning. That's bad mojo. You now know the ultimate risks of poor posture.
What is Good Posture?
 |
| Normal, Over-Corrected, and Proper Postures |
Most people normally stand slouched, with their shoulders rolled and neck forward. The body counteracts this forward weight by adjusting your butt, lower, and upper back the other direction. This throws off your spinal curves - as you can see.
People attempt to over-correct by 'standing up straight'. They throw their lower back and shoulders in the opposite direction. This results in their chest being pushed out like a young girl seeking recognition for her first training bra. End effect: your spinal curves are over-corrected causing muscle pain, your body weight is thrown forward, and you overtly look like an idiot. Or worse if you're a woman. How about we try the right way?
Proper posture has always been hard for me to understand when others explain it. Mostly because what I'd heard was the form of the aforementioned attention-seeking-idiot-pose. I finally figured it out, but I'm not sure I can say it better. The BEST way I can explain how proper posture looks is this: Comfortably Confident. Here's how to acheive what I mean:
- Stand sideways in front of a mirror. Without tensing muscles, align your ears, shoulders, and hips.
- To align your ears, you'll move your neck up and slightly back. You will probably feel like you are both putting your head back & lifting your chin a little. That's because you are!
- To move your shoulders concentrate on your shoulder blades. Do NOT move them closer together to get your shoulders back. Rather, move them down. This will LIFT your shoulders into position, as well as open up your ribcage and flatten your gut with no extra effort.
- Fight the temptation to push your butt way back. Seriously. It's a hard fight. This uses your lower back muscles and torques the spine. Badness. You are supposed to 'tuck' your hips by keeping your hamstrings, butt, and abs "slightly taut." That's confusing. In order to figure it out I went to the extreme and tensed those muscles. The result? The pelvic thrust. So that's what you go for. Do a mini-pelvic thrust until your hips are lined up above your knees. There you have it.
- Most importantly: once you have this posture down, hold it. What you need to do now is be aware of how your muscles feel when standing properly. You won't always have access to a mirror, but you WILL always be able stand properly if your body knows how it feels!
Ok, now that all of that is explained.... my continuing gift to myself with this is an active choice to improve my posture. But there are other factors, two in particular that cause the most trouble: (1) Maintaining good posture while seated and (2) Dealing with the muscle pain associated with the corrections.
These will be addressed tomorrow.
These will be addressed tomorrow.
No comments:
Post a Comment