‘Don’t slouch.”
‘Sit up straight.”
‘Keep your shoulders back.”
When I was little, these phrases were just words I thought my parents just liked to say. Now, they hold a much deeper meaning. Bad posture doesn’t just make you look bad; it can make you feel bad! Having negative effects on your health.
Bad posture is not as simple and unimportant as some may make it out to be. Poor posture causes more health complications than most people know. These complications can have long-lasting effects on your overall health for the rest of your life. Below you’ll find a list of ways poor posture can negatively affect you and a list of ways you can improve your posture to avoid the negative effects.
Negative Effects of Bad Posture
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Adverse Changes to Your Spine
Bad posture changes the alignment of your spine, putting pressure on areas that don’t need it or can’t handle it. In your natural, healthy state, your spine has a healthy curve to its shape. But just like you can train muscles to change size, you can train your spine to sit in certain shapes. After spending years slumping at your desk and standing with bad posture, the natural curve of your spine is lost. In fact, the excessive strain on your spine can become so bad that it decreases the integrity of your spinal column causing your discs ( our spines’ internal shock absorbers) to weaken and compress and your vertebrae to erode. These changes not only cause long-term pain and discomfort, but the new alignment can even make you shorter and stop your ability to absorb shock and maintain proper balance.
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Increased Pain
When your body isn’t in alignment, it isn’t happy. The way your body tells you of its unhappiness is through pain. In fact, bad posture can lead to chronic back pain and disc degeneration. The reason why is because of increased strain on your back muscles, bones, and other parts of your body. Bad posture can cause pain in parts of your body including your hips, shoulders, and neck. This in turn can lead to tension headaches. An example of this is experiencing how much easier for your body to hold the weight of your head directly above your back than it is to hold it slightly forward with no immediate support. Good posture allows your body to support the weight of your head and other body parts effortlessly.
Tips to Improve Your Bad Posture
Now that you’ve learned the problems poor posture can create, let’s talk about how to avoid these issues. There are a few simple things you can do to improve your posture and improve your overall wellness.
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Strengthen Your Back Muscles
If you want to get rid of bad posture, first you need to make it easier to stand up and sit up straight. There are a few simple exercises you can do to improve your back muscles. They include squats, deadlifts, and many other strength-based exercises. Doing these exercises with proper form a few times per week can make it easier to keep the correct posture. Training your core to hold tight and strong will assist your back muscles to improve posture. Strengthening certain muscles will allow them to hold your body in correct posture without tiring as easily, helping you hold better posture for longer.
Exercise: Bird Dog
Exercise: Dead Lift
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Stand Up Often
It’s easier to have good posture when you’re standing. Take regular breaks throughout the day and stand up and walk around your office. You may want to set a timer to remind yourself to take a quick break walk or adjust your back position at your desk. Remember to keep your shoulders rolled back and your head held high as you walk or stand.
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Fix Your Chairs
Since you most often have bad posture when you sit, make it easier on your body to correct the problem by investing in the right chair. Getting your home or office chair ergonomically set up to assist your posture can make a huge difference. For your office, invest in an ergonomic chair, keyboard and mouse. Avoid hunching over your keyboard, screen, or phone while you work. Keep your knees slanted down slightly below your hips and directly over your feet. In your car, adjust your seat so your headrest is in the middle of your head and so your head is no more than 4 inches away from the seat, and set up all your mirrors to match your ‘perfect’ posture.
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Stretch
When you live your life with bad posture, not only do you shorten your spine, you shorten your muscles, Stretching can help lengthen these muscles back to their natural state. Stretching can also ease sore muscles and reduce pain and tension.
Mobility: Cat / Cow
Mobility: Thread the Needle
At Equilibrium Sports and Spinal clinic, we thrive on helping our local community improve their bad posture. We take into account all aspects of life to get you back doing the things you love to do, pain-free. Our Osteopaths service Malvern, Glen Iris, Ashburton, Hawthorn, Toorak, South Yarra, Camberwell and Caulfield. Book online today, and let us help you feel and move better than you did yesterday!
Any questions on how to fix your bad posture? or want to know more about how an Osteopath can help you?
Feel free to email us at info@equilibriumsas.com.au
