I am often surprised how little attention posture receives by general practitioners and in the media as one of the mainstays of good health. There is a saying, well known by the physicians of old: “a good many ills are caused by poor posture, and a good many ills can be averted by simply ensuring one carries oneself properly.”
By Ryko Kalinko, Hayman Island wellness therapist
Having poor posture is like living in a house not built exactly according to the architect’s plans – a wall here is sloping, a room there is shorter (or longer), structural walls that are supposed to be aligned to evenly carry weight are misaligned so that one wall gets too much weight… at some point that wall is going to fall! (Ironically, some people put a lot more time and effort into ensuring their houses stand correctly and strong, than into making sure they stand correctly and strong.)
The human body is a design masterpiece; its structure represents a perfect balance of all of the normal forces acting on it. There is something very powerful about sitting or standing within the law of that structure. When a person stands within the law of their structure, the very act is strengthening for the person.
On the other hand, when a person stands inconsistently with the law of his or her structure, that person stands at odds with nature and takes upon him or herself a very onerous burden; some other part of the body must take a weight it was not designed for. While the body can accommodate this for brief periods of time, if it goes on for longer periods, it can have very debilitating effects that go beyond just muscular pain – organ functioning in the area that is burdened can also suffer. For example, a person who stands placing undue weight over the kidneys will be compromising kidney function.
Posture is all about how our bodies deal with gravity. The basic question that is posed by posture is: given that gravity is a force that is constantly present, does the way you deal with gravity strengthen you or weaken you? If the force of gravity strengthens you, day to day, then your posture is good. If the force of gravity is weakening you, day to day, then you must change something.
The design of the body is such that, while standing, the hips and shoulders should be level with each other and the ground. Gravity is supposed to be conducted through the spine (not acting on the spine or any spinal muscles) and absorbed in the quadriceps muscles at the front of the body. This requires a slight tilt of the pelvis down and towards the front. This tilt places the weight of gravity squarely on the quadriceps. The quadriceps muscles are the largest and strongest muscles of the body and it makes sense that they should be the ones to take the brunt of gravity. They become stronger when this is the case. The pelvis should not be held too far forward. The correct position of the pelvis places the spine into a neutral position which, with its natural curve, allows the upper body and head to be strongly supported while encouraging ease and flexibility of movement.
In my practice, I see a lot of people who suffer back pain that is directly attributable to poor posture. Typically these people stand with their pelvis arched backwards, causing a great strain on the muscles of the lower back. This is the result of the “chest out, bum out” military style school-of-hard-knocks that many people took to be the final word on posture. It really isn’t! Holding the sacrum back puts a constant strain on the paraspinal muscles that were never designed for such exertion. With correct posture, the paraspinal muscles flex and relax with each walking stride, rather than being constantly held tight as the military style advocates.
For those that suffer from poor posture, the good news is that we can always retrain ourselves to have good posture again.
There is a saying that all it takes is 21 days for the body to acquire a new habit. So, if you start putting in place all the right ingredients for excellent posture right now, after 21 days you wont have to think about it – your body will do it all automatically. For those who suffer back pain, adhering to the principles of correct posture is absolutely essential.
The ingredients of excellent posture does not take long to learn, and those concerned should see a posture specialist to tailor the corrections needed for their unique body. It will be the one of the most important steps you can take for ensuring optimal health and well-being.
Ryko Kalinko is the resident wellness therapist at Hayman Island
Illustration image from Randolf Stone‘s books on Polarity Therapy which deal extensively with posture. Image reproduced with permission from CRCS Publishers.