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(HealthNewsDigest.com) – May is Correct Posture Month, but should we ignore our backs for the other eleven months of the year? The fact is, bad posture is a health crisis. Americans spent over $100 billion to treat back pain last year. That number is rising but the pain isn’t going away, according to the Journal of the American Medical Association.
Despite these grim findings, the path to a pain-free life isn’t a mystery. Good posture alleviates back, neck, hip, and foot pain, and the benefits extend far beyond that. Proper alignment of the bones and tissues improves breathing and circulation, boosts the nervous system, promotes digestion, enhances athletic performance, reduces risk of injury, and has even been shown to lower cortisol and raise testosterone levels – which means less stress and more confidence.
The best part is, you don’t need an elaborate new physical therapy routine and you don’t need to throw your chair out the window.
Here are some small tweaks from the Gokhale Method that will go a long way.
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1. Don’t sit up straight.[1] — You read correctly! Usually when people think “straight” they stick out the chest and lift the chin. This puts tension on the mid back and neck. Instead, rotate your pelvis slightly forward so that your bum sticks out behind you. This moves pressure from your spine to the seat of your pants. Next, think about a string that starts at your low back and runs straight up through the crown of your head. This motion should allow your chin to angle downwards, and helps realign your head over your spine.
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2. Use your chair to your advantage.[2] — If you are confined to sitting all day, you can put the chair to work by stretchsitting. To do this, place your tush firmly in the back of the seat, lean your upper body forward, then stretch your spine away from your hips with the help of a deep breath and by pressing your hands downwards into the chair. Without letting go of the stretch, press your spine against the back of the chair and relax. Now the chair is helping to traction your spine, and taking some of the pressure off your lower back. A towel or stretchsit cushion will help hold your back in an elongated position for extended periods of time.
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3. Do a shoulder roll[3] . — This movement helps open the chest without putting undue stress on the back. One at a time, round your shoulders slightly forward, then up, before sliding the shoulder blade down the spine. Westerners tend to hold their arms toward the front of the torso, but this leads to slouched posture, bad circulation, and dangerous lifting habits. By giving your shoulders a new home toward the back of the torso, your slouch will dissipate and your body’s natural grace will surface.
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4. Get taller while you sleep[4] . — Night is a great time to lengthen your spine since a bed can work similarly to a chair to help you stretch out. Lay on your back, place a pillow under your knees, lean on your elbows, and, with your lower body anchored to the bed, use your elbows to gently stretch your spine away from your hips. Hold the stretch while you lower your back to the bed, one vertebra at a time, until your head is on the pillow. The extra traction in the spine permits your discs to rehydrate and your back muscles to adapt to a longer, healthier resting length.
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5.Tone your glutes while you walk[5] . — In cultures where back pain is rare, people engage their gluteal muscles after they place weight on the walking leg. This is key to propelling the body forward powerfully and smoothly, and ending each step with a gentle landing. It protects the joints and the low back with every step. Engaging the glutes may feel strange at first, but you will soon enjoy the power and sensuality of it, as well as the side benefit of a perkier behind.
We can blame all sorts of things for our pain, but the fact is, our bodies are strong and they were meant to work. If brickmakers in Burkina Faso and Portugese fisherman can bend over and carry heavy loads for long hours, year after year with no pain, then we can surely learn how navigate our desks and grocery bags. Restoring our natural posture is the key to gaining a new lease on life. The Gokhale Method® teaches you to live pain-free using Primal Posture™. For more information, visit http://GokhaleMethod.com/.
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