Why is posture correction important? How does it affect your mood, energy, weight and overall health?
One of the initial phases of a fitness program, I work on with the majority of my clients is posture correction. This step will help her/him reach their ideal fitness goal whether it be weight loss, muscle gain, toning/firming or overall health maintenance.
Here, I will be discussing the benefits of working on posture correction followed by how poor posture negatively affects the overall health.
Benefits of Posture Corrections:
- Posture correction will help you to avoid injuries, reduce injuries, alleviate stress, bring mental clarity, increase energy throughout the day and during workout sessions, resulting in better weight loss and muscle building.
- Good posture may help banish diet-related fatigue. In an interview with Dr. Holly Phillips, the medical expert, she suggests that improved posture is one of the best natural ways to improve energy levels during weight loss.
- Good posture helps improve confidence. It frames the body’s appearance instantly, making you look and feel better about your body. Studies have shown that when people practice good posture, they feel more confident. https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2009/10/091005111627.htm
- Good posture improves comfort and mobility. When you stand up straight or sit tall at your desk, your muscles work more efficiently and may help you to move more throughout the day. http://www.prometheuslive.com/2016/01/28/good-posture-for-breathing-digestion-and-productivity/
Now, let’s look at how poor posture negatively affects overall health?
The spinal cord is the mother of the body. When any part of the vital organs in the body are put under stress, for example: compression of the lungs due to slouching of the spine (back). This can impair lung function and restricts oxygen to the organs.
https://www.hopkinsmedicine.org/health/conditions-and-diseases/spinal-cord-compression
Before diving further, let’s identify various types of posture disorders and opportunities to improve posture via posture correction techniques.
There are different posture disorders as follows: Kyphosis, Swayback, forward head, and Lordosis (to name a few).
Different individuals fall into different posture categories. For example, the majority of the individuals I work with have a combination of mild-extreme levels of either Kyphosis-Lordosis, swayback or forward head.
- When any of these posture disorders are visible, you may be experiencing tension, stiffness, or pain in your neck, shoulders, and back. The body will follow where your head goes, so if your head is forward, your shoulders and back will also hunch forward. Your neck is designed to stay vertical to support the weight of your skull, which on average is about 10-12 pounds. Every inch that your head falls forward it adds another 10 pounds of stress on the neck, shoulders, back, and spine. (https://wtvr.com/2015/02/19/heres-exactly-why-the-weight-of-your-head-is-causing-problems/.)
- Poor Posture creates poor circulation, impaired lung capacity, and poor digestion. https://www.acefitness.org/education-and-resources/lifestyle/blog/5716/how-posture-affects-breathing/
- If you have a desk job then you likely know how easy it is to slouch your shoulders and neck over your abdomen and chest. When you slouch, you compress your abdominal organs, including your digestive tract. Doing this can over time, negatively impact your metabolism and your ability to process foods properly. Individuals with poor posture may overeat (as the organs are compressed such as the intestines), till the stomach fills up pushing the diaphragm up, extending the spine up for sufficient breaths to take place in the lungs. http://www.prometheuslive.com/2016/01/28/good-posture-for-breathing-digestion-and-productivity/
- Weight gain can affect posture, causing individuals to bend their spine and joints in unusual ways to accommodate the extra weight. Over time, excess weight can cause poor posture, including stooped shoulders, a bent spine, hips that rotate out of alignment, and a protruding belly.
- By leading everyday life such as sitting with poor posture all day, you’re keeping your body from obtaining the necessary circulation it requires for the lunges to distribute oxygen to the vital organs in the body. When your lungs aren’t functioning as they should be, your brain, heart and other vital organs won’t get the oxygen they need leading to elevated stress to the body and mind. https://www.acefitness.org/education-and-resources/lifestyle/blog/5716/how-posture-affects-breathing/
Again, benefits of focusing on posture correction through repetition, we interrupt the poor habitual patterns in the body, creating positive impacts in the body patterns resulting in good ever lasting habits. These benefits include reduced low back pain, mental clarity, increased energy levels, increased lung capacity, you will appear taller and thinner, improved digestion and increased confidence, all leading to better overall health.
