4 Simple Tips To Improve Your Posture
Having good posture is something that has always been drilled in to us by various health professionals, personal trainers and even family and friends. But what is good posture? Does having ‘good posture’ matter? Does bad posture lead to pain or injury? Read on to find out the answers to these questions.
1. What do we mean by good posture?
What is good posture? Can we have good and bad postures? The answer is no! The classic ‘good posture’ is chin tucked in, shoulders back and down, chest proud, sitting stiff as a board. For most people this is actually uncomfortable and there is no evidence to support sitting in this position is better than slouching!
If you sit in this classic upright position for 8 hours a day, you are probably at a higher risk of posture related pain than if you relaxed a bit more and didn’t feel too guilty about slumping into a chair.
2. Do I need to sit in a certain way?
No – We are all built differently and posture is highly variable from person to person. The most important thing you can do is move frequently. Changing positions throughout the day and having a variety of postures will reduce the build up of pain and stiffness, keep your joints health and mobile and muscles relaxed and flexible. If you have the option of switching between standing and sitting, do that. If you don’t, try and move every 30mins even if just to stand up and sit back down 5 times. Movement and variety is so important!
3. What about my ergonomic set up?
It doesn’t matter to put it bluntly. Find a position that’s comfortable – or even better, a few positions that are comfortable – and switch between them throughout the day. I am sick to death of seeing generic ergonomic set ups that have actual measurements of where people should sit from their computer, what angles there elbows and shoulders should be, what eye line that need to the degree etc.… These type of ergonomic set ups take no notice of our individual body shapes and sizes and the persons comfort and ignore the fact there is no evidence to support these set ups in reducing pain.
4. Movement is key!
As stated already, move throughout the day as much as you can. Change positions in your chair or switch between standing, sitting, slouching and maybe even some upright posture if it’s tolerable. It makes sense right? If you don’t move throughout the day, you are going to be more stiff, sore and tight than if you were mobile throughout the day. This will greatly reduce injury risk, reduce the risk of developing aches and pains, and will also boost your step count!
If you want further information on posture or you are in pain – please seek advice from your health professional by clicking here or contact Dan at Noble Physio on 0451 366 694 or dan@noblephysiotherapy.com.au