TL;DR: Maintaining good posture is essential for maintaining good body health and wellness. Learn what good posture is and utilize techniques to maintain it.
Intro
“You won’t get respect unless your back is erect”. At some point in your life someone has probably gotten after you for your posture. Whether it be your parents telling you not to slouch at the dinner table, or a teacher sticking a meter stick down your back to force you to sit up straight in class, everybody knows that good posture is important. This article will overview why posture is important, what proper posture is and provide methods for how one can improve this posture, so sit up straight and get ready to learn!
Why is Proper Posture Important?
Posture can have great impacts on your overall health. Practicing good posture has been shown to have the following effects [1]:
- Keeps bones and joints in the correct position (alignment) so that muscles are being used properly.
- Helps cut down on the wear and tear of joint surfaces (such as the knee) to help prevent the onset of arthritis.
- Decreases the strain on the ligaments in the spine.
- Prevents the spine from becoming fixed in abnormal positions.
- Prevents fatigue because muscles are being used more efficiently, which allows the body to use less energy.
- Prevents backache and muscular pain.
If proper posture is not practiced some serious negative effects can begin to appear over time. To start, long term improper posture can begin to permanently affect the curvature of your spine, leading to a hunchbacked or “nerd-neck” appearance. Not only does this look bad but it is also dangerous, as it compromises the structural integrity of your spine, increasing your risk of spinal injury [2].
Furthermore, poor posture can also be a major source of back pain as it can put improper pressure on your spine. If you feel pain in your lower back, between your shoulders or in your neck after a day at the office, you most likely have poor posture, which should be corrected.
Less known, bad posture can also affect your digestion. Sitting incorrectly can compress your organs which can slow your digestion and lead to stomach issues. [2]
Finally, bad posture can also reduce your productivity, because if you are focusing on how uncomfortable you are and constantly having to adjust positions and get up and stretch you will be able to focus much less on your work.
What is Proper Posture?
Sitting:
To achieve proper sitting posture, make sure you are checking off all the following items [3]:
- Adjust your chair until your legs are parallel with floor and your knees are at the same level as your hips
- Make sure your knees are bent at a 90 degree angle
- Keep both your feet flat on the floor
- Distribute your weight evenly across both hips
- Sit with your back fully straight and upright, making contact with the back of your chair
- Keep your shoulders back
- Make sure your butt is all the way back in your chair
- Keep your chin parallel with the floor. If this makes it difficult to see your monitor it is too low and you should invest in a monitor stand.
Standing:
To achieve proper standing posture make sure you are checking off all the following items:
- Keep your back neutral and upright, not rolling forward or backwards
- Keep your chin parallel with the floor
- Keep your shoulders pulled back and even
- Distribute your weight evenly through both feet
- Keep your knees even with one another and pointed straight ahead
How to Improve Posture
Use an alarm
Correcting your posture can be difficult at first, as we continue to fall into old, engrained bad habits. It’s easy to start off your day with perfect posture, but you may find that as you get distracted by work you will begin to slouch down into your chair. A simple way to remedy this is by setting a recurring alarm on your phone to remind you to check your posture ever so often. Set it for every half an hour or hour throughout your day. When it goes off take a couple seconds to inspect your posture and make the necessary corrections to it. Over time you will begin to form better posture habits and thus will need to set your alarms less frequently, if at all.
Use a mirror
Similarly to using an alarm to remind you to check and fix your posture, a mirror can also be used. By placing a mirror beside your work station you will be able to look over throughout the day and inspect and correct your posture if needed. This is helpful as sometimes we may not be able to feel that we are slouching, but it will definitely be quite easy to see when we’re slouching.
Get the right chair
The modern lifestyle has us spending an alarming amount of time sitting in one stationary position. Investing in a good ergonomic chair can really help you to maintain good posture throughout the day, reducing back pain and other medical issues. Try to find a chair that has adjustable height, adjustable lumbar support, adjustable neck support and adjustable arm rests so that you may configure it to be the optimal posture for your own specific body.
Use a posture corrector
There are various devices available on the market designed to help you fix your posture. More basic ones are made of straps, which pull back on your shoulders to force you to keep your back straight. These are quite a cheap and simple option to use, although many users seem to report that they are not the most comfortable thing to wear. An example can be found on Amazon here.
More advanced posture correctors use sensors to detect when you’re slouching and then gently vibrate to remind you to correct your posture. These are a little more expensive than the previously mentioned posture corrector, however many users find them much more comfortable and less restricting to use. An example can be found on Amazon here.
Exercise
The muscles in your abdomen, pelvis, hamstring and back are all responsible for maintaining posture, and thus are often referred to as postural muscles [4]. Improving the strength of these muscles will help you to hold and maintain proper posture more easily and for longer periods of time. Exercises such as squats, deadlifts, core exercises, yoga and pilates are great ways to improve your postural muscles, thus improving your posture.
Conclusion
Posture is important. Having poor posture can lead to back pain, the dreaded “nerd-neck” as well as serious long term health effects. Take some time to learn what correct posture is and ensure that you are always using it. If you have difficulty maintaining proper posture, use some of the methods outlined in this article, such as investing in an ergonomic chair, setting an alarm to remind you to check your posture, strengthening your postural muscles or utilizing a posture correcting device. Your back will thank you!
References:
[1] https://my.clevelandclinic.org/health/articles/4485-back-health-and-posture
[2] https://integrehab.com/blog/back-pain/6-effects-poor-posture/
[3] https://www.health.harvard.edu/staying-healthy/why-good-posture-matters
[4] https://mstrust.org.uk/a-z/understanding-and-improving-your-posture/core-muscles-and-your-posture#:~:text=Core%20stability%20muscles%2C%20or%20postural,are%20four%20layers%20of%20muscles.
