Top Tips To Improve Your Posture
How To Achieve Better Posture
You’ve been sitting at your desk all day and it feels like every bone in your neck and spine is screaming for relief. Maybe your job means you’re on your feet all day. It makes no difference; you still feel like everything is creaking by the end of the day.
Most people will lay the blame squarely on the long hours they spend in a chair or standing at work for the pain in their neck and backs, but the problem could actually be the result of having a bad posture. A good posture means all of your body parts are correctly aligned so the muscles can support the skeletal and muscular systems as well as helping all the internal organs to function correctly. To have a pain free day and keep your body correctly aligned, here are some top tips to improve your posture.
1. Don’t Slouch
There was a reason why your overly prim teacher kept telling you to straighten up and stop slouching. Even though, as kids, we may have thought our teachers were just being superior in expecting us to sit or stand like miniature statues, they knew what took us until adulthood to understand. Standing or sitting straight was less stressful on our bodies and a good posture makes for better concentration and productivity. Slouching is a bad habit many of us form, but like all bad habits, it can be corrected. Every so often, stop and check your body alignment and adjust it accordingly. If you need a reminder, set an hourly alarm on your smartphone and correct your posture if needed. Although that alarm will be annoying at first, it will get you into the habit of checking your posture and correcting it.
2. Invest In A Better Chair
Whether you work in an office or from home, you are most likely spending eight or more hours a day at your job. This can be the cause of a considerable amount of discomfort but the work must be done so we push through the pain and discomfort. To alleviate this problem, you need to sit correctly in your chair, but that may also mean you need to invest in a better chair. Many people who work from home tend to sit in their dining table chairs. These chairs may be comfortable for an hour or so during dinner, but they usually aren’t designed to sit in for long periods. Get yourself an ergonomic office chair. These marvels have been designed with a specific shape that forces you to sit with a good posture. Most companies now have such chairs as they have seen the wisdom of keeping their staff comfortable so if your office doesn’t have such chairs, ask management to implement them.
3. Long Standing Problems
Not everyone’s work involves them sitting all day and that means these people spend their working hours on their feet. This is where the posture problem can be even more of an issue. After spending long hours standing, we do become tired and this often means we have a natural tendency to start slouching. Shift your feet to ease the discomfort, rock backward and forwards from the balls of your feet to your heels, and try to walk around as much as your job permits. If your job involves standing in one spot for most of the day, you may benefit from a standing mat and standing desk.
4. Regular Exercise
One of the best ways to correct your posture is to keep your body strong and this means regular exercise. Certain exercises are obviously better than other and you will get the most benefits from core strengthening workouts such as yoga or Pilates. These types of exercises work wonders at building strong core muscles and the stronger this muscle group is, the more they will naturally pull your spine and other areas into the correct alignment needed for good posture. Pull out the yoga mat and exercise your way to a better posture. You can also use a balance board to practice.
5. Posture Correctors
After years of sitting or standing with bad posture, it can be difficult to pull our bodies into the correct alignment again. If you are struggling to improve your posture, consider wearing a posture corrector. A good posture corrector can be worn inconspicuously under your clothes and will help you maintain good posture throughout the day. A posture corrector keeps your shoulders back, relieving the pressure from your neck and shoulder region. By supporting your upper body, it will prevent your shoulders from slouching forward.
6. Limit The Heels
Stilettos and other heeled shoes may look good but we all know they put a lot of pressure on our backs. Limit the wearing of these shoes to special occasions and only if you will be sitting for most of the time. If you must be on your feet for most of such an occasion, bring along a spare pair of comfortable shoes and only put the stilettos on during photography sessions.
