Importance of Good Posture!

The Role Posture Plays in Our Daily Lives

Posture has everything to do with our lives. Just like breathing is something we do organically, our daily posture habits greatly affect our health and well-being. It is true that our posture can even affect our long-term health. We’ve all had a loved one nag us to stop slouching or sit up straight, right? Well, it turns out there’s more to standing up correctly than just looking confident, which, by the way, is another positive benefit of good posture!

Good posture can alleviate back pain, stimulate muscle mobility, prevent muscle strain, and reduce impact and stress on the bones, joints, and ligaments. Bottom line? Good posture is extremely important to your overall health.

Why Put So Much Focus on Good Posture?

Why not slouch when relaxing after a long day? Posture affects multiple facets of overall health, for better or worse. Along with the general younger and slimmer appearance good posture can give, it also helps prevent back, neck, and shoulder pain. When your body isn’t aligned correctly, it creates extra strain in areas that aren’t equipped to support your weight.

Imagine holding a bowling ball directly in front of you with one arm. How long could your arm stay strong before the weight of the bowling ball starts to wear you down? A forward-leaning, overbalanced head can put stress on your neck in a similar way, leading to tight, stiff muscles and chronic pain.

Posture affects more than visible physical health.

Upright posture allows for better oxygen flow into and through your body, which improves the function of every organ, including your brain. While poor posture is linked to various issues, including poor confidence and increased depression, an upright posture can give an emotional boost and support positive mental health. Simply standing or sitting up straight could be the best gift you can give your body.

What Is Good Posture?

Posture involves the alignment of the spine and neck. Essentially, it’s how we stand, sit, or lie down. That’s right — you can have good posture while you sleep, too! Good posture doesn’t revolve around simply sitting upright. It is connected to muscle tension and gravity. In short, we use muscle tension to hold our bodies in an upright position, so that the weight of gravity doesn’t let us slump down to the ground. Improving our posture takes funneling our focus into our body. Some of the body’s postural muscles automatically help us stand or sit upright; however, others need a little coercion. Not only does alignment equate to good posture, it also helps create balance and mobility.

What Does Good Posture Look Like?

Most people think that correct posture means standing with their pelvis tilted backward or forward in an exaggerated manner. They may crane their neck forward or over-straighten it, which can cause serious damage. As a rule of thumb, your pelvis should be in line with your ribcage, with your head comfortably balanced atop your spine. A key is to avoid pulling or pushing your body in any direction that feels unnatural. Doing so can hurt your posture and breathing, and make you look and feel ill at ease.

To check if you’re doing it right, stand with your back against the wall, abs tucked in, and head facing forward. If the back of your head and shoulder blades are touching the wall, you’ve got this!

When you see someone with good posture, you know it immediately. Take professional singers for example. One of the first things you learn as a singer is breathing technique. While this is an undeniably important aspect of the craft, proper singing posture is no less critical. Having correct body alignment is key to optimal breathing and may lead to better singing.

It’s basic anatomy. Good posture opens up your chest cavity, maximizing space for your lungs to fully expand and take in more oxygen. If you keep your chest elevated and take low, diaphragmatic breaths, the air gets released more slowly. This is how singers can belt out those long, impressive phrases without running out of breath.

The way you hold your body also affects your ability to produce sound. If any part of you is too tense, you’ll have trouble hitting certain notes. To release tension, ensure that your frame is in perfect alignment, paying particular attention to the position of your neck. Keep it nice and straight, as this allows air to pass unobstructed through your vocal cords. Gently lower your shoulders as if you’re trying to move them as far away from your ears as possible. Let your arms hang loose at your sides. Remember — you’re aiming for a stance that’s relaxed and neutral, as opposed to stiff and restricted.

Benefits of Good Posture

It may seem like straightening up won’t really make a difference in your life. But the benefits of good posture are many. They include:

Better breathing

Increased self-confidence

Back pain relief

Happier moods

Better digestion

Improved concentration

Those are just some of the benefits of postural improvement, but you can also bet that you’ll feel better, look better, and move better when you make it a focus.

Make Good Posture a Habit to Live By

We’re not suggesting good posture is a cure-all; rather, it is an effective way to invite daily well-being into your life. To truly set ourselves up for optimal performance and life-long habits that foster health and wellness, we need to learn how to make good posture a habit.

There are many opportunities to improve your posture daily. In fact, learning how to make good posture a habit requires small changes every day. The important thing to acknowledge is that you’re here, actively working on your posture and improving your daily well-being. Bravo!

By Hariharan. V

DYOFITXⓇ Certified Exercise Professional

Credits:

https://www.uprightpose.com/education/correct-posture-guide/