Having a good posture has always been a priority from a young age with parents and teachers telling us to ‘sit up straight!’ or ‘Stop slouching!.
However, posture isn’t just about standing or sitting up straight. It’s also about strengthening your core so you can hold your body in the best way for comfort and your health.
The core includes the abdominals, lower and upper back and muscles surrounding the hips including upper leg and glutes.
These work together to stabilise and align your spine. If your core is weak your spine doesn’t get the support to maintain a good posture naturally.
This means that other muscles compensate to try and keep you upright, which can lead to a number of issues such as neck and shoulder tension, lower back pain, digestive issues, difficulty breathing, fatigue, restrictive movement, headaches, chronic pain and joint problems.
This is why putting effort into improving posture and core stability is so important!
Methods to do to help with core stability and posture:
- Core strengthening exercises work all of your torso from top to bottom and front to back. Helping you stand straight with your limbs aligned.
- Be more aware of your posture: imagine a piece of string that attaches to the top of your head. wherever you put your head, your body automatically finds the most efficient way to support it. If you align your head over your shoulders and straighten you neck as if the string is pulling it up from the top of your head, it allows your shoulders to drop and open up. While pulling in your abdominals.
- Regular stretching, yoga and/or pilates can also help to realign the body and loosen the muscles to allow the body to stand naturally in an upright position.
- Regular massage maintenance can help loosen up the core muscles and allow them to shift to a more natural position, which in turn allows the body to straighten up.
So, stand up straight and stop slouching as it will make a big difference to your body and your mind!