Many of us spend much of our day sitting at work and at home. Our devices have exacerbated the problem even more. Look at the picture above. This is the position many of us spend a lot of time in. No wonder so many of us are having pain.
The latest book that I read was Rethink Your Position by Katy Bowman. Highly recommended! It is a an easy read and GREAT info. Here are some key points.
Our generally sedentary lifestyle has caused 1. “Text neck” (yes there is a term for it!) a forward posture of the head resulting from tight neck flexors ( why many of us get humps at the back of our necks). Almost everyone I see has at least a little forward head posture. 2. Tight shoulders - We rarely lift our arms overhead. We also don't move our arms out the the side in full range. We are not using our arms to their full potential which makes them tight 3. Tight psoas (muscle deep in your abdomen that attaches to the spine and assists in flexing the hips), tilted pelvis (anterior or posterior), forward lean over feet, and decreased spine flexibility. Most of these issues are due to too much sitting as well as not moving in full ranges of back and hips. When these areas become tight it pulls everything off balance resulting in pain limited range of motion. If not corrected the problems will continue to worsen What to do about it? 1. MOVEMENT is everything! Switch positions throughout the day. Move your body in all ways possible as much as possible. 2. Initially get regular myofascial release treatments to loosen the tight areas. This will make it easier and less painful for you to get into the correct postures. You may need occasional “tune ups" as your body will want to return to the old postures (Katy didn't say this, but I believe MFR is an important step in getting posture back. If it hurts to get in the right position you are less likely to go there) 3. Repeatedly think about getting into alignment ( like every hour at least initially) - Hips stacked over legs. Commonly we have a bit of a forward lean where the weight is more on the balls of the feet than the heels. Look at the side of your body in a full length mirror. Does the top of your body lean forward over your feet? TIP: Stand in front of the mirror every day and get into alignment. Feel how it feels to be stacked over your legs. It may feel like you are going to fall over backwards for awhile. - Neutral tilt in pelvis-Not tipping forward or backward. Good rule of thumb. put your thumbs on your hip bones and your pointer fingers on your pubic bone to make a triangle. Each of these points should be in line with each other. If your pointers point out (posterior tilt) if they point back ( anterior tilt) You can also have one of your hip bones higher on one side than the other or one more forward than the other. This too can cause back and leg issues TIP: Stretch your psoas! Lie on your stomach with a 4" ball a couple of inches to the right or left of your belly button. Hold for 2-3 minutes. Katys stretch for psoas is to lay on back with shoulders elevated at shoulder blades on pillow or bolster. Let your tummy and legs drop to floor. Also stretch calves, quads, and hamstrings! -Tuck you rib cage in- It is common that we puff out our rib cages. Especially when we are trying to stand up "straight" When we push our shoulders back the rib cage often comes too due to tight thoracic ( mid back) area. So when you stand up tall think about keeping that rib cage straight up and down. TIP: Do the kitchen sink stretch! Hang from the sink keeping your back straight stretching out those thoracic vertebrae - Shoulders rotated back- Most of us also have shoulders rotated forward because we do everything in front of us. So when working on posture think about keeping those shoulders rolled back in the sockets where they belong. TIP: Stretch out your shoulders by lying over a large ball, foam roller, or rolled up towel and bring your arms out to the sides doing "snow angels" - Keep your neck with small concave curve- Most of us have forward positioned necks "text neck" When this happens we take out the curves in our necks and the weight of our heads needs to be supported somehow. That is how the hump in your upper back is formed. The body creates its own counter balance. I have lots of clients with neck pain. I anticipate this will only get worse as we live in a society where EVERYONE is constantly on phones or devices. TIP: Pretend like the weight of your head is getting pulled up ramp. With your chin level to the floor pull your head back and then up like a string is pulling it up to the ceiling. Lay on your stomach when on your devices... Tell your kids to do this!! -Move your feet and ankles- Due in part to all of the shoes that we wear with heels. ( even some tennis shoes have at least a little heel) our ankles are getting tight trying to keep us upright. Our feet are getting tight as well because we wear shoes almost all of the time, which according to Katy is like a cast for our feet. They too aren't getting the movement they need. There are 33 joints in each of our feet. They are meant to move and grip almost like your hands, but with shoes on they are unable to do this. TIP: Don't wear shoes whenever possible. When you have to wear shoes wear shoes with minimal sole and ability to move your toes. Katy suggests shoes like Crocs. Also DON'T wear heels! Even a minimal heel on your shoe can put you off balance. Stretch calves and hamstrings. Like I tell all of my clients walk and sit like royalty head up and shoulders back. Don’t let that crown fall off😉
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