1. Sustained Pain for Longer
If you are suffering from a mild discomfort, poor posture may make it worse. If you have a strained back, bad posture could further weaken and even break the muscle.
The correct posture places pressure in the areas of the body designed to bear the load. By sitting the wrong way, you are placing weight on areas of your body that should not receive pressure. Incorrect sitting creates more maladies, putting other body parts at risk for injury.
2. Makes You Tired
Fatigue is a byproduct of constricted blood flow as caused by bad posture. To get the proper blood flow, your body needs to be in perfect alignment. By placing it a bit askew, you are constricting critical veins and arteries. Less blood decreases the amount of oxygen that is getting to necessary systems.
This may make you less prone to physical activity, which makes the body seek to conserve energy. Fatigue is often a result of energy conservation, as it is the body shutting down and saving energy.
3. Shrinks Your Body
Incorrect alignment of your body puts pressure on places that don’t need it. It can also create excessive strain on the items that are holding it together. When your body has bad alignment, your spine and discs weaken, creating worse problems.
The gradual pulling and weakening decreases the integrity of your spinal column. The pressure causes the discs to compress and the vertebrae to erode. Spinal erosion makes you shorter and cannot reverse.
4. It Makes You Sad
Studies from both Harvard and San Francisco State have found that there is some sort of connection between bad posture and bad moods, even depression. These two separate studies found that hormones key to confidence were not common in their poorly postured subjects.
There are little hints on why this is the case. Some suggest that good posture triggers endorphins for happiness and confidence. These will feed back onto themselves, allowing for more energy and more activity to occur.
5. It Makes You Look Bad
This one is a cosmetic affectation. Slouching forces your shoulder and pelvis forward. The forward facing pelvis forces out the stomach and makes your back appear like a hump. While you have not gained weight, it may look you have more weight that you do. A straight spine keeps the stomach and shoulders locked in place where they should be.
HOW DO I FIX MY BAD POSTURE?
1. Strengthen your back muscles
One of the reasons you may be slumping over is because of underdeveloped back muscles. Use simple back exercises to adjust posture.
Simple exercises you can do at work include:
Squats
Get a five-pound weight or something equally heavy (small, heavy trash can). Bend down and pick up the weight with your hands, carrying all the weight with your legs. Come up with the weight with a straight back. Place the weight back down in a similar, reversed fashion.
Lunges
Put a foot forward on the ground. Then, lean your body forward and put weight on the forward foot. Aim to create a 90-degree angle with the leg you are supporting your weight on. Repeat about 10 times.
Shoulder Rolls
Roll your shoulders forward, and then roll your shoulders backwards. It’s a simple exercise that you can do at your desk.
2. Stand up more
Take regular standing breaks. Your chair could be an ergonomic champion, but standing up will strengthen muscles and encourage better alignment.
3. Adjust your car seat
Your headrest should be in the middle of your head. It should not be in the middle of your neck. Your head should not be more than 4 inches away from the seat.
4. Get a firmer mattress
If your mattress is not firm enough, your back could be contorting into uncomfortable positions. Get a firm mattress.
While you are dealing with sleeping, use fewer pillows. Too many pillows can encourage bad posture. Also, stick a pillow between your legs if sleeping on your side.
5. Be a string
Your spine needs to be straight. Act like your spine is a string. Is the string bent? Keep the string straight.
HAVE MORE IDEAS ABOUT BAD POSTURE?
Let us know! Contact Absolute Life Wellness Center to let us know what else we can help people do to improve their posture.
