I've been thinking a lot about posture recently. Mine is terrible. It has been for as long as I can remember; I slump when standing next to short friends, I never sit up straight in chairs and I now slump at work and when doing dishes at home because table surfaces in Japan are a good three inches lower than they are in America!
I'm thinking about trying to improve my posture–I hear it'll make me look thinner and more confident, which seems pretty awesome–but it's tough. Just sitting up straight in my office chair long enough to type this entry is putting strain on my mid and upper back.
I'm wondering what other people have done to improve their posture. Are there techniques, devices, weight training or mental tricks that helped you?
Although I'm not really tall, I am taller than most of my friends and I quite often find myself slouching around them, as well as at work. But since I've started weight training my posture has gotten a lot better, simply because my core is stronger... It almost takes more effort to slouch now then to stand up straight.
EricAnn, what exercises do you do that you think are specifically beneficial to your back? I've done a machine that exercises my lower back, but nothing for the mid- or upper-, where I really feel the strain.
To get in a good position, roll your shoulders backward, like you would do during a warmup or cool down stretch. At the top of the roll, drop your shoulders down, but keep your chest and back held high. Relearning posture is mostly a matter of creating a new habit. It will feel odd at first, even though it is much enter for your body! Good posture exudes such confidence, and I cringe when I see pretty young women slouching like primates. ;-)
EricAnn, what exercises do you do that you think are specifically beneficial to your back? I've done a machine that exercises my lower back, but nothing for the mid- or upper-, where I really feel the strain.
Pretty much any exercise I do standing. So, weighted squats (although you don't stand straight, you have to keep your back in a straight line), overhead presses (really works the upper back for me), and barbell rows, and then of course back extensions.
I always used to slouch when walking when I was younger, until I read somewhere that if you slouch you give off a signal that says "victim". I don't want to walk through the world looking as though I doubt my place in it, and I want to give off an air of confidence that means, in the unlikely event someone's eyeing me up for an attack of some sort, they're more likely to pass me by and go for someone who's all hunched up and looking like they won't fight back. That's enough to get me always walking with good posture.
No idea what to suggest when you're sitting down though, it's something I have trouble with myself. I find I have horrendous posture at home, where we use the bedroom as a living room and I spend an awful lot of time sitting cross-legged with no back support. But then I find at my parents' house, sitting in their high-backed armchairs, my posture's fine because I have support for my back (so long as I take the cushions off). So maybe try out some new chairs, for work and at home?
As for washing up, I have no advice but I feel your pain. It's like every manufacturer of kitchen and bathroom sinks thinks no woman in the world is more than five foot five. Are we taller women just not supposed to wash anything, ever?
You can try foam rolling (helps loosen up all your soft tissue). It's a little uncomfortable at first. But once you get used to it, it's like a massage!
For corrective exercise, check out Y-T-I-W raises (they all target your upper back).
Although I'm not really tall, I am taller than most of my friends and I quite often find myself slouching around them, as well as at work. But since I've started weight training my posture has gotten a lot better, simply because my core is stronger... It almost takes more effort to slouch now then to stand up straight.
I've noticed the same thing. I also suspect that's why I miraculously gained over an inch in height--I'm standing up straighter!
I've actually thought about getting one of those posture belts to help out. I don't know if I would wear it to work, but I could definitely wear it at home. My back is freaking killing me after sitting all day.
I'm sure exercises help, but this would at least give some relief immediately.
(There are probably more on youtube-look for one's by a physical therapist.)
My physical therapist has me doing rowing exercises with a theraband (flat stretchy band), with the band anchored a little about waist height and rowing straight back to the waist. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dXV5hq0FNeU
It does make your upper back tired to sit up straight because we aren't used to it and I still have to consciously make myself readjust my posture all of the time. Also, stretching the chest/front of the body is important. This video demostrates the chest stretch that my PT showed me: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8RpyQMeXgFU
I have degenerative disc disease in my neck from years of bad posture, so it's good that you're thinking about it and wanting to fix it now.
Thanks for those videos, ddc, and to everyone else for the input! When my gym is open again tomorrow I'm going to work on incorporating some new core exercises into my circuits to see if I can't make sitting up straight a little more comfortable for myself.
Sit up straight!
