|
POSTURE
To most
people, "good posture" simply means sitting
and standing up straight. Few of us realize
the importance of posture to our health and
performance.
The human body craves
alignment. When we are properly aligned, our
bones, not our muscles, support our weight,
reducing effort and strain. The big payoff
with proper posture is that we feel
healthier, have more energy, and move
gracefully. So while the word "posture" may
conjure up images of book-balancing
charm-school girls, it is not just about
standing up straight. It’s about being aware
of and connected to every part of your self.
Ideally,
our bones stack up one upon the other: the
head rests directly on top of the spine,
which sits directly over the pelvis, which
sits directly over the knees and ankles. But
if you spend hours every day sitting in a
chair, if you hunch forward or balance your
weight primarily on one leg, the muscles of
your neck and back have to carry the weight
of the body rather than it being supported
by the spine. The resulting tension and
joint pressure can affect you not only
physically, but emotionally, too, -- from
the predictable shoulder and back pain to
headaches, short attention span, and
depression.
Correcting
bad posture and the physical problems that
result can be accomplished in two ways. The
first is by eliminating as much "bad" stress
from your body as possible. Bad stress
includes all the factors, habits, or
stressors that cause your body to deviate
from your structural center.
The second
is by applying "good" stress on the body in
an effort to move your posture back toward
your center of balance. This is accomplished
through a series of exercises, stretches,
adjustments, and changes to your physical
environment, all designed to help correct
your posture. |
