How to get good posture

Whether it’s slouching in front of the TV or hunched over at the desk, bad posture can lead to backaches, rounded shoulders, neck pain and more. Helen Hawkes asks the experts for tips on perfect posture.

When you think about good posture, you probably think of the charm school notion of standing up straight and looking alluring. Yes, good posture is attractive and can help us look more statuesque, but knowing how to stand, walk and sit with our bodies in natural alignment can save us from pain now and later.

Good posture can reduce backache, neck ache, and wear and tear on muscles and joints. It can make our daily tasks more effortless and it can keep our bodies in alignment even in old age.

Unfortunately, if we carry our body incorrectly it will slowly grow into that shape. If your shoulders are always forward, you will become a round-shouldered person. If you slump and let your stomach muscles protrude, you will slowly become unable to pull them in.

“Our bodies are designed to be easily upright, but we interfere with that over time,” says Alexander Technique teacher Mary Cerny-Carrigan. “Our muscles tighten up, affecting our posture.”

So how do you get good posture, especially when your muscles have become stuck in the positions that you practise day in, day out from sitting still for hours at a desk, bending and twisting doing chores, or slumping in front of the television? According to Mary, we need to relearn how to move, unlearn bad habits and retrain muscles that help support our body, such as those in our ‘core’, which she describes as the entire length of the spine.

The good news is that gaining good posture is not as difficult as it sounds. It’s more about an attitude adjustment – being more conscious of our body and undertaking some simple exercises that you can do at classes or at home. There are also a wide range of experts – from personal trainers, to Alexander Technique and Pilates teachers, who are willing to help you go from slump to standing tall.

Body awareness
Alexander Technique is a method of adjusting and correcting habitual, misaligned body posture in order to relieve muscle tension and allow the body to move with greater ease and efficiency. It’s also a way to integrate the mind and the body – students are taught to become aware of patterns in everyday activities, such as walking, sitting, standing, bending and lifting.

“Alexander Technique is a holistic practice in that it works with the whole body and mind,” says Mary. A teacher will begin by taking a full history of what you do in your everyday life and then teach you to become aware of your whole self: from the top of your head to the soles of your feet.

“Alexander Technique is self-empowering – it increases awareness of how you use your body, and you can apply that in your everyday life,” says Mary. “It is very easy to walk, or to work, with your head sticking forward, without noticing you are doing it. The result is your whole body and posture has to compensate. It affects you right down
to your feet.”

“That’s why working in front of a computer can be terrible for some people. They have ten per cent of their body weight leaning towards the screen. The muscle strain is tremendous.” Besides upper-back pain, people who stick their head forward may also develop a rounded back and shoulders. Those who suffer lower-back pain often tend to have a sway-back (an inwardly curved lower back) – “they stiffen to stand up straight and when they sit down they collapse,” says Mary.

While Alexander Technique can help you come back into balance, it isn’t a quick fix. You will need to gradually adjust your postures and your consciousness of them over time.

For more information, visit www.alexandertechnique.org.au.

 

Posture at work
Ergonomics – the science of designing workplaces so they fit the person – can help reduce the stress of the repetitive motions you perform at your job and improve your posture.

The Occupational Health and Safety Unit at Flinders University in Adelaide offers these tips for sitting at a desk:

• Your feet should be flat on the floor or on a support (such as a footrest) with your thighs horizontal to the floor.
• Your weight should be on your bottom or the upper part of your thighs. 
• Your body should be held comfortably erect with the back supported in the lumbar region.
• The relative height of the seat and the working surface should be adjusted so that the shoulders are relaxed when the hands are resting on the keyboard. The upper arms should hang naturally, with the angle between the forearm and upper arm about 90 degrees, and with minimum wrist bending.
• The top of the computer monitor should be located just below eye level.

If concerned about your posture at work, ask your employer for an occupational health and safety check. For a comprehensive guide to setting up your workplace to best support your posture, read Monash University’s guide online at http://adm.monash.edu.au/ohse/assets/docs/guidelines/ergonomics-computer.pdf.

 

Exercising the core
A car accident left Caroline Fadi with chronic pain in her back and neck. After trying a range of treatments, including everything from osteopathy to acupuncture, she started attending Pilates classes in 2000. Today she is a full-time teacher (see www.coreconnectionpilates.com.au). The result is that she now carries her body with pain-free ease.

“Pilates can improve posture, strengthen pelvic floor muscles, decrease back pain and increase flexibility,” says Caroline. Pilates is a full-body workout that strengthens from the inside out. By working through a unique series of exercises, you discover your ‘core’ (according to Pilates, the deep abdominals, bottom and spine) and develop greater body awareness. “Pilates strengthens the internal muscles, including the deepest abdominals that support the spine, not just the surface layer,” says Caroline. “It puts the body into correct alignment, because when sitting or standing the core muscles are working.”

Pilates may be especially useful for women who have had children and find it difficult to use their abdominal muscles properly, she says. “It works the pelvic floor muscles to improve posture and can get those and the stomach muscles working together.”

One-on-one classes are suggested for people with special needs.

To find a qualified instructor and classes, visit www.pilatesalliance.net and
www.findpilates.com.au.

 

Photography: Steven Chee. Hair & make-up: Lucy Baldock. Styling: Nadene Duncan.