POSTURE
One day I was helping my friend on the set, where she hosted her talk show about success. Before the show started, she was sitting on a chair and I took a few pictures of her. I instantly showed her the pictures and we both tried to figure out what was wrong. While she looked absolutely gorgeous, the pictures did not convey her beauty and energy. Even her charming smile did not help. She began to fix her hair but the image stayed the same until the moment when she opened her shoulders and uprighted her back. Then she looked so powerful, beautiful and sexy again.
Your posture is not only a road map of how you have been using your body with time but also your signature and the way people perceive you. Moreover, it portrays how you feel. Whether you are standing, sitting, or performing movements of any kind, your muscular system tends to take the path of least resistance with regard to posture. Posture has a direct impact on joints and muscles. Poor posture could occur if certain muscles or muscle groups are overactive, underactive, or imbalanced. Causes of these problems include a lack of mobility, poor technique when exercising, or performing everyday tasks with incorrect techniques. That happens because you are engaging the wrong muscles at the expense of the right ones.
There are a few main checkpoints where posture imbalances take place.
- Foot and ankle
- Knee
- Lumbo-pelvic-hip complex
- Shoulders
- Head and cervical spine.
Since many of us spend days sitting at a desk, it is important to get into the habit of maintaining a good posture. Slouching with your shoulders and pelvis pushed forward is one of the most common forms of a poor sitting position. It causes problems throughout the body, ranging from backache to muscular pains, joint pains, and even tension headaches. Slouching forward also compresses your diaphragm, resulting in restricted breathing. Train yourself to be aware of your posture especially if you have to sit for prolonged periods of time.
Developing or improving a good posture will help keep muscles at their proper length, allowing muscles to properly work together, ensuring correct joint movement, reducing the risk of injury and maximizing a high level of functional strength.