Sit up straight! It may have been decades since anyone directed such an admonition at you. It’s more likely that many of us last heard the phrase when we uttered it to our children. Posture is important. And probably for more reasons than you know.
Sit up straight!
It may have been decades since anyone directed such an admonition at you. It’s more likely that many of us last heard the phrase when we uttered it to our children. Posture is important. And probably for more reasons than you know.
At Pain Management 360 in Huntington, Hurricane, and Charleston, West Virginia, Dr. Rudy Malayil and our team have issued more than our share of “sit up straight” messages, though usually accompanied by specific reasons for the advice.
You may already know that posture is key in helping back and neck pain. Improving your posture brings balance to your spine and its supporting cast of muscles and soft tissue.
There are, however, four surprising benefits offered up by better posture, of which you might not be aware. Let’s review what good posture means and examine those not-so-obvious advantages.
Defining good posture
While there’s sometimes a habit aspect to slouching posture, it doesn’t always come down to behavior. You might have muscle inflexibility working against you, restricting the range of motion necessary to hold balanced positions.
The strength of your muscles can also play a role, particularly in your abdominal core, stomach, back, pelvis, and buttocks. If they’re not carrying their intended load, it’s harder to maintain balance along your spine.
Consider these elements of good posture:
- Your chin is parallel to the floor
- Your spine is in a neutral position without exaggerated curves in your lower back or neck
- Your shoulders are even and rolled back, rather than curved forward
- Your arms are at your side while standing or bent 90 degrees at the elbow for seated keyboarding
- Your abdominal muscles are braced but tension-free
- Your hips are even and centered over your feet when standing or parallel with the floor while sitting
- Your knees are facing ahead but not locked when standing and bent 90 degrees when sitting
- Your body weight is equally supported on both sides
In addition, seated postures feature both feet flat on the floor. If you’re working on a computer, your monitor should be at or slightly below eye level to maintain a level chin position.
4 surprising benefits of better posture
Do what you need to do to reset your posture throughout the day. Timers set to 20 or 30-minute intervals give you the reminders you need to quickly balance and neutralize your position. It won’t be long until you start to recognize benefits like:
More energy
Your body is more efficient with good posture. That’s right, it takes more energy to hold a slumped, bad posture than it does to stay balanced. With better posture, you’ll have more energy to put into more important aspects of your life.
Reduced headache frequency
An unbalanced posture adds physical tension to your body. If your shoulders are slumped or rolling forward, tension flows into your neck, where tightness often translates to headache pain. Posture resets help to reduce tension and related headaches.
Self-esteem boost
An often unconscious benefit of improving your posture shows up as confidence. Think about how body language influences the way you perceive others, and you’ll understand the subtle forces at work when you’re sitting or standing with better posture.
Reduced jaw pain
Just as rolled shoulders add tension to your neck, tipping your head forward to check your phone or tablet can add tension to the temporomandibular joints, the points where your jaws hinge. If you have unexplained jaw pain, consider unbalanced posture as a potential cause.
When you’re dealing with pain, posture-related or not, contact Pain Management 360 by calling our location nearest you or clicking to request an appointment online. There’s no reason to tolerate pain. Plan your visit today.
