How to Correct Poor Posture
Are you suffering from back or neck pain after long drives or hours working at a computer? It may indicate that you’re suffering from poor posture. Good posture isn’t just about standing straight and looking your best!
There are many things you can do to improve poor posture and improve your overall health. This article will reveal some tips and tricks to correct poor posture and why it’s so crucial to feeling and functioning your best.
What is Poor Posture?
Posture is basically the way you hold your body. There are two significant types of posture, which are:
Dynamic Posture: The way you hold yourself when moving, such as when bending, walking, or running.
Static Posture: The way you carry yourself when you aren’t moving, such as sitting, sleeping, or standing.
Maintaining proper dynamic and static posture is critical to avoiding injuries, muscle strain and fatigue, and the key to proper posture is the position of your spine!
Our spine has three natural curves in the neck, mid-back, and low back. Correct posture helps maintain the curves, which reduces stress on your spine and soft tissues. When sitting or standing, your head should be above the shoulders, with the top of your shoulders over the hips.
Does Poor Posture Affect the Health?
Poor posture not only affects your appearance and how you carry yourself, it can also affect your health in many ways! Over time, poor spinal posture can result in the following:
Misalignment of your musculoskeletal system
Degeneration of your spine, leading to arthritis and increased risk of injuries
Neck, shoulder, and back pain
Decreased flexibility
Abnormal joint mechanics
Altered balance, increasing the risk of falling
Disruptions to breathing and digestion
Clearly, there are important reasons to improve your spinal posture beyond appearing confident and feeling more comfortable, it’s also important for your long-term health!
What Causes Poor Posture?
A common cause of poor posture are factors that lead to weakening of one or more of the structures supporting the body, including the spine, hips, neck, shoulders, abdominal wall, or back muscles.
In some cases, those born with genetic conditions affecting the shape of their spine and hips may influence posture at birth.
Injuries from sports or other activities can lead to changes in static or dynamic posture.
Changes in spinal posture can also come because of our work or other activities that result in overusing certain body parts. Underuse can also pose a problem. Staying in one position for long periods can affect one's ability to maintain proper spinal posture.
Yes, this includes those who sit for most of the day! Some of your muscles and ligaments begin to tighten while others become weaker, leading to poor spinal posture.
Tips and Tricks to Correct Poor Posture
Now that you understand why it’s crucial to have good posture, the next question is what you can do to improve it. Here are some excellent tips to follow:
Keep your body in alignment
When standing, get into proper spinal posture by distributing your body weight evenly to your feet, back, front, and sides.
When sitting in an office chair, leverage your chair’s features. Make sure to sit up straight, aligning your ears, shoulders, and hips in a vertical line. Even sitting for long hours can get tiring, so shift forward to the edge of your seat with a straight back, alternating with sitting back to ease your back muscles.
Naturally-balanced postures, can be achieved through sitting on a therapy ball. The pelvis will be rocked gently forward which increases the lumbar curve, naturally shifting the shoulders back. Think of it as sitting on the edge of your seat.
Additionally, we recommend being aware and avoiding any unbalanced postures like crossing your legs unevenly when sitting, leaning to one side, tilting your head, or hunching your shoulders forward.
Move!
When your muscles get tired, you’ll likely begin to slouch, slump, or get into other poor spinal postures. This will place extra pressure on your neck and back. To maintain a relaxed and supported posture, change your positions frequently.
We recommend taking a 2-minute break from sitting every 30 minutes. Use this time to stand up, stretch, and even walk around.
Speaking of moving around, it’s also essential to get regular exercise with the appropriate stretching exercises that help with your posture. Gentle exercises like Pilates and yoga help strengthen your support muscles in the stomach and back, improving your posture. Take ten minutes of your day to perform simple stretching exercises.
Use ergonomic office chairs and posture-friendly props
You can find supportive ergonomic products to help take the load and strain away from your spine! For example, there are ergonomic office chairs or those with adjustable back supports you can invest in.
There are also other practical products, like:
Footrests and portable lumbar back support help with your spinal posture when sitting in an office chair, on soft furniture, or driving. You can also use a small pilot or rolled-up towel.
Use bags, backpacks, or purses designed to minimize strain.
Proper corrective eyewear and positioning your computer screens within our natural, resting eye position helps prevent leaning and straining our necks.
Besides these tips above, you may also want to use a reputable chiropractor such as Mobile Wellness Care offers and receive a chiropractic adjustment at your location of choice! Such adjustments help treat back pain and put your body back to proper alignment, enhancing posture.
Wrapping It Up
Now that you know some tips and tricks to correct poor posture, it’s time to begin using these tips for your health.
If you’re looking for a chiropractor to help with your posture and get an alignment to relieve your body, contact us now! We can discuss our services and see how we can help get your body in top shape.
