Give Me That Good Posture
Carrying heavy backpacks, couch slouching, tech neck, phone screen squinting, the laptop hunch — it’s easy to develop poor posture in today’s world.
When I was in my teens, people always told me I had great posture. It’s still pretty good now, but I can tell it’s getting worse as I hunch over my computer all day long.
I also hold my stress in my neck and shoulders and when those get tight enough they start to pull on other ligaments in my body and slowly turn me into a raw macaroni folding in upon myself.
While I hope that I can stand tall at 80 years old, I know that poor posture doesn’t happen in a day. It creeps up over time by practicing poor posture regularly. Like many of us, I’ve spent the last year mostly sitting for hours on end indoors.
For me, this has been a fast track to muscle loss, weak ligaments, sore joints, and a body that can easily get tweaked out of balance with a simple move. It’s time to rebuild and regain that good posture!
What you can do:
- Poor posture can come from a stiff body. Stretching can help. Stretch after working out while your muscles are still warm. Lightly stretch in bed before or after sleep. Get a massage or visit a steam room. You can also stretch in the tub while taking a hot bath! 🛁
- Replace your desk chair with a stool that allows you to place your feet firmly on the ground. While sitting down, engage your core and imagine a string running from the top of your head, pulling your back up long and tall. Once your body is in a tall and straight position, relax your muscles (especially your shoulders) but keep your frame in position
- Tuck your hips under your upper body when you walk by tightening your abs. Loose abs lead to a curved back, protruding stomach, and can crunch your lower vertebrae
- Do a body scan. Find a space where you can tune in and close your eyes. Start in your toes and scan up to your head, checking in with each part to see how it feels, if it needs anything, and if it’s out of alignment. Then address those arts that need some TLC
- Get a 3D body scan or use a tool to measure your posture. You could also have someone take a side view picture of you standing normally so you can see the areas you need to work on. Or do a posture check ( read here). If the check shows you need to fix a few things, talk to your doctor and see what you can do
- Sleep on your side and with a pillow in between your knees to balance your hips. If you do sleep on your back, use a small pillow that can go under your neck
- If you spend a lot of time driving make sure your seat, mirrors, and steering wheel are all adjusted so your body is in an easy position and you don’t have to strain to see or drive
- Yoga — I know everyone is getting on this bandwagon, but there are many reasons to join. Watch videos online, use Apple fitness, or take a class. Yoga helps loosen up stiff and inflexible muscles and tendons.
- Get good shoes, a good mattress, a good bra ♀!
Resources:
*Note: I have not tried any of these nor are endorsing them. They are just options that you can explore yourself. For me, I work out and actively think about sitting up tall by doing regular body scans.
Originally published at https://www.pinkterminal.io on August 29, 2021.
