Good posture goes beyond simply appearing proportional; it plays a significant role in preserving your overall wellbeing. Ensuring that you maintain proper body alignment, whether in motion or at rest, is crucial for averting discomfort, injuries, and various health complications in the long run.
What is posture?
There are two types of posture, which refer to how you hold your body.
- Dynamic posture is how you hold yourself when you are moving, like when you are walking, running, or bending over to pick up something.
- Static posture is how you hold yourself when you are not moving, like when you are sitting, standing, or sleeping.
Ensuring that you possess proper dynamic and static posture is imperative.
To have good posture, it is important to consider the alignment of your spine. Your spine naturally curves in three places – at your neck, middle back, and lower back. Proper posture requires keeping these curves intact, without exaggerating them. Your head should align directly above your shoulders, while the upper part of your shoulders should align with your hips.
How can posture affect my health?
Slouching or slumping over can have negative effects on your health due to poor posture.
- Misalign your musculoskeletal system
- Wear away at your spine, making it more fragile and prone to injury
- Cause neck, shoulder, and back pain
- Decrease your flexibility
- Affect how well your joints move
- Affect your balance and increase your risk of falling
- Make it harder to digest your food
- Make it harder to breathe
How can I improve my posture in general?
- Be mindful of your posture during everyday activities, like watching television, washing dishes, or walking
- Stay active. Any kind of exercise may help improve your posture, but certain types of exercises can be especially helpful. They include yoga, tai chi, and other classes that focuses on body awareness. It is also a good idea to do exercises that strengthen your core (muscles around your back, abdomen, and pelvis).
- Maintain a healthy weight. Extra weight can weaken your abdominal muscles, cause problems for your pelvis and spine, and contribute to low back pain. All of these can hurt your posture.
- Wear comfortable, low-heeled shoes. High heels, for example, can throw off your balance and force you to walk differently. This puts more stress on your muscles and harms your posture.
- Make sure work surfaces are at a comfortable height for you, whether you’re sitting in front of a computer, making dinner, or eating a meal.
How can I improve my posture when sitting?
It is crucial for many Americans to sit properly and take regular breaks as they spend a significant amount of their time sitting, whether it be at work, school, or home.
- Switch sitting positions often
- Take brief walks around your office or home
- Gently stretch your muscles every so often to help relieve muscle tension
- Don’t cross your legs; keep your feet on the floor, with your ankles in front of your knees
- Make sure that your feet touch the floor, or if that’s not possible, use a footrest
- Relax your shoulders; they should not be rounded or pulled backwards
- Keep your elbows in close to your body. They should be bent between 90 and 120 degrees.
- Make sure that your back is fully supported. Use a back pillow or other back support if your chair does not have a backrest that can support your lower back’s curve.
- Make sure that your thighs and hips are supported. You should have a well-padded seat, and your thighs and hips should be parallel to the floor.
How can I improve my posture when standing?
- Stand up straight and tall
- Keep your shoulders back
- Pull your stomach in
- Put your weight mostly on the balls of your feet
- Keep your head level
- Let your arms hang down naturally at your sides
- Keep your feet about shoulder-width apart
When adjacent body parts are aligned in an anatomically ‘optimal’ position, it can be considered as good posture, while bad posture occurs when they are aligned away from the optimum. To grasp the concept of ‘optimum,’ imagine a series of wooden blocks stacked on top of each other. When they are stacked optimally, with each block perfectly aligned with its neighbor, a tall and stable tower can be constructed. The farther the blocks are stacked from this ideal position, the more likely the tower is to become unstable and potentially topple over. For instance, ankle weakness and over-pronation of the foot can cause compensatory rotations in the tibia, which in turn affect the knee, hip, and spine. Similarly, a forward head posture can result in rounded shoulders and a curved spine.
While each runner is unique, it is widely acknowledged that maintaining proper alignment while running decreases the likelihood of injury and enhances efficiency. Although there are rare cases where runners achieve remarkable efficiency with unconventional body positions, the highest efficiency and lowest risk of injury are generally achieved by following optimal alignment.
Below are the 3 Examples of How Sitting Affects Posture
Forward Head Posture/Rounded Shoulders
Workplace Habits: Frequently adopting a slouched position, often while using a computer. Impact on running: Maintaining a forward head posture and rounded shoulders even when not at the desk. When running with this posture, arms tend to swing across the body, pectoral muscles become tight, limiting rib expansion, and other parts of the spine adjust to compensate for the forward head position. These factors can lead to inefficiency and potential injury. Solution: Arrange your workstation to promote sitting with shoulders back and neck straight, ensuring that your ears are aligned with your shoulders. Regularly stand up from your seat and perform shoulder blade stretches by pulling them backward and lowering your chin.
Poor Achilles Tendon Length
Workplace Causes: Wearing shoes with an elevated heel, which is not limited to women as many men’s shoes also have a 2cm raise. Effect on running: Consistently utilizing the calf muscle in a shortened position can result in tightness and limited motion in the ankle. This may lead to compensatory movements such as excessive foot pronation and rotation of the tibia. These effects can have far-reaching consequences, including the appearance of injuries such as Achilles tendinopathy, plantar fasciitis, and knee pain. Solution: Opt for shoes with a minimal difference in height between the heel and toe (known as the drop). Additionally, take regular breaks from wearing heeled shoes and engage in calf muscle stretching exercises.
Poor Hamstrings Length
Causes of workplace issues: The act of sitting for long periods of time with bent knees can result in the hamstrings becoming tight, as they are held in a shortened position. The longer the duration of sitting, the tighter the hamstrings become. Impact on running: Having adequate hamstring length is crucial for proper stride while running, as inadequate length can cause excessive stress at the knee joint. This can lead to knee pain or the development of ITB syndrome as a result of compensatory mechanisms. Solution: It is recommended to stretch the hamstrings daily, even on days when running is not performed, and to take regular breaks from sitting by briefly standing or walking every hour while at work.
By following these tips, you can take care of your body while at work, which will benefit your running and decrease the chances of getting injured. Therefore, make sure your work posture does not negatively affect your running.
