Posture has an effect on the health of our bones, the volume of air we can take in to our lungs with every breath, and the strength of our muscles (including our pelvic floor (PF)). So how is it that can something as simple as posture can affect so many things within our body?
Well, first of all, posture is not simple. It’s a dynamic balance of the muscles on the front, back, and sides of our bodies. Our skeleton would simply collapse without the support of our muscles, tendons, and ligaments. Our posture is challenged everyday by gravity and the daily activities we perform that are usually out in front of our bodies, requiring us to reach forward with our arms, stoop forward, and sit for great lengths of time. Very rarely do we perform activities that strengthen the muscles on the back side of our bodies. Rather, these muscles are constantly working to hold our shoulders and head back and the natural curves in our upper, middle, and lower back. Over time these muscles get stretched out and give into the effects of gravity and repetitive activities that we perform out in front of our bodies.
The good news is that these changes in muscle length and gradual decline in muscle strength can be reversed by consistently performing specific exercises aimed at strengthening the muscles on the back side of our bodies. To help with that, I have described two simple exercises below, which specifically target postural muscles.
Bridge with 3 second negative–Lying on your back with your knees bent, squeeze your buns tight, press through your heels, lifting your buns up. Press your hips up and squeeze your buns tight for a count and then lower slowly to a count of 3-2-1. When your buns contact your bed or the ground, reset, press through your heels and lift your hips again. Perform 3 sets of 8 repetitions.
Shoulder blade scarecrow squeezes –Hold your arms out to the side with your elbows bent and your hands hanging down like a scarecrow. Rotate your hands up and pull your elbows down in a “W” position, squeezing your two shoulder blades down and in for a count. Release the squeeze by rotating your hands back down and then repeat for 8 reps.
So, how does better posture improve the health of our bones, our lung volume, and the strength of our muscles? First, let’s take a look at the effects poor posture has on the health of our bones. If we consistently hold a slouched posture with rounded shoulders, we are more likely to experience shoulder pain or neck pain. And if our middle spine is constantly bent forward in a rounded “C” curve, we experience compression on the front side of our spinal vertebrae which can lead to disc problems, sprains, strains, and eventually compression fractures of our spinal vertebrae.
Posture is also very important for our lower extremity. Our knees, hips, and lower back are affected by how our feet contact the ground. So we look at our posture from the ground up. If there is uneven pressure on the inside or outside of our feet, we will have more compression on the bones within the outside or inside of our knees that breaks down the cartilage and eventually can lead to osteoathritis. Another example is the position of our knees. If we allow them to lock back when we are standing, we increase the wear and tear on our hips and/or low back. So you can see that postural awareness is key to the health of our bones from our head to our toes. By holding appropriate posture, we maintain good spacing within our joints, reducing joint compression forces that can lead to arthritis, bone spurs, and fractures.
Appropriate posture also affects the amount of air we can take in with every breath. Rounded shoulders and forward head posture compress the rib cage and doesn’t allow full expansion of our lungs. The less oxygen we take in with every breath, the less oxygen-rich blood that reaches our brain, organs, and muscles. By standing in neutral spine and holding our shoulders back, we are able to achieve greater lung expansion. The challenge is to hold neutral spine throughout our day. It takes awareness and effort to hold this dynamic position when gravity and most of our daily activities are pulling us forward. (See how to find neutral spine below)
If you observe someone with poor posture carefully, you will see the muscles in their neck and upper chest are working hard to pull in the limited amount of air they can. This limits the amount of oxygen reaching the brain, organs, and muscles, affecting our health overall.
How does posture affect muscle strength? The answer to this question is that every muscle has a specific length at which it has its greatest strength. The muscles on the back side of our body get stretched out as gravity and repetitive activities pull us forward so they gradually get weaker. Also, those muscles that are shortened to a point where there is minimal muscle tension also experience a gradual strength decline. This is exactly the case with our pelvic floor muscle when we don’t hold optimal posture. Our PF is at the perfect length to provide good tension, holding up our abdominal organs and keeping us continent when we are in neutral spine. This is because our pelvic floor is attached from our pubic bone to our tail bone (coccyx), so the muscle tension changes as we rock our pelvis from forward (tucking buns under) and backward (sticking our buns out). Neutral spine gives a slight lift to our tail bone giving the perfect tension to our PF muscles. This neutral spine position also shifts our pubic bone down, giving more bony support to our abdominal organs.
So the big question is how do we find our neutral spine position? First, take your pelvis through its full range of motion. To do this, place your hands on your hip bones so you can rock your pelvis like a cradle. Rock your pelvis, first sticking your buns out and then tucking them under. These are the two extremes of the range of motion of your lower back and pelvis. To find neutral spine, rock your pelvis once again, sticking your buns out and now rock your pelvis back ever so slightly so that you are in between the two extremes. Finish by pulling your abdominals in tight. Here you have found your neutral spine. If I were to push on your shoulders, compressing your spine when you are here, you would be solid as a rock and in perfect balance. These are subtle movements of our spine and it’s not easy to control without visual feedback, so I strongly recommend the use of a mirror as you initially find your neutral spine. (For more detailed instruction on posture and neutral spine positioning, please refer to our Hab It: Pelvic Floor DVD)
To finish with optimal postural positioning, let’s take it from the ground up. Place your feet shoulder width apart with equal weight on each leg, careful not to lock those knees. Find neutral spine of your low back and pelvis and draw your abdominal muscles in tight. Then finish by simply opening up your hands so your palms face forward. This action rolls your shoulders back without effort and produces ears over shoulders, over hips, over ankles. Work to find and hold this neutral spine position throughout your day to take care of your bones, to maximize your oxygen uptake, and to achieve optimal muscle strength and support!
Surely, Tasha, by pulling in your abdominal muscles you are shifting the uterus, bladder and bowel and repositioning them directly over the vagina? No amount of kegeling is going to create muscles that can stop this descent. However by allowing the lower portion of your tummy to relax, you create a space for these organs to rest and be suspended over the pubic bones.
DP, I respectfully disagree. The key is finding neutral spine first and then second, engaging your lower abdominals or transversus abdominal muscle. When you are in neutral spine, you have assumed your correct anatomical position with a natural lordotic curve of your lower back. This neutral spine position shifts your pelvic organs forward, where there is more bony support from your pubic bone. The prevention of prolapse requires both bony and soft tissue or muscular support from your pelvic floor. This is where engaging your lower abdominals becomes so important. By engaging these muscles, you effectively “turn on” your pelvic floor muscles because they work hand in hand. This increased muscle tone in your pelvic floor muscles works to give better support to your abdominal organs, holding them in place over the top of your pubic bones.
You are right that often engaging your lower abdominals or transversus abdominus is taught incorrectly. The instruction to tuck your tail bone under and draw your belly button in is incorrect. This will flatten out your lumbar spine and result in the posterior shift of the organs. The key difference if finding neutral spine first and then engaging these muscles, like a corset to hold you there.
Tasha
I appreciate the dialogue and hope this clarifies my instruction for you and our other readers.
Great! I liked how you indicated the steps in finding the neutral spine position. I’m sure it will be of use to those interested in correcting their poisture.
Tosha, I have been practicing the Whole Woman posture technique for more than two years. I would like to try your way for a while but when I attempt neutral spine, I find my natural stance is now the opposite of tucked, almost to the full range. When I come forward slightly, my back begins to hurt immediately and it feels wrong for me. This posture has been beneficial for me with the exception of a less toned lower belly. Where do the problems lie in engaging lower abs while standing in WW posture? Would it be beneficial for someone to check my stability in my present posture with abs engaged, and then again slightly forward (what you are describing as neutral) to see if there is a marked difference? If I am more stable in present posture, would you think it would be okay to engage abs while retaining WW posture? Thank you, and please feel free to email if you have further questions. Also please feel free to delete if this places you in an uncomfortable position. I appreciate the professional level you work from, and the caring/inclusive nature you surround that with. Casey
Casey,
What a fantastic question. I will do my best to clarify my thoughts. First, I want to talk about our joints in general. A healthy joint should have full flexion and full extension. Let’s think in terms of our knee joint. If I locked your knee joint in full extension and casted you for 2 years – I can’t imagine the pain you would have trying to bend that knee again when I took the cast off. You would have to work hard to get back full flexion of your knee, to allow you to walk and squat appropriately. Now apply this to your back. In the extreme extension you have had your back for the past 2 years, the L3-4, L4-5, and L5-S1 joints have essentially been locked in one position. This limits your mobility, your shock absorption, and is likely leading you down a path to osteoarhtritic changes as you are compressing bone against bone on the back side of your spine. Sounds pretty extreme I know, but a healthy spine should be able to range from full extension to full flexion. This increases blood flow, allows for good shock absorption with every step, run, jump we take, and gives our spine better range of motion which protects our upper back, neck, etc.
So my thoughts are for you to take it slow. Do not force your low back joints, but begin to stretch them into flexion with yoga moves like “childs pose” or “cat/camel stretch” to slowly bring back your full range of motion. I agree with you that a great starting point for you would be to engage your lower abdominals, pulling your belly button “up and in” while you are in your current posture. As you strengthen your transversus abdominus, it will naturally pull you closer to neutral spine, which is a more natural lordotic curve of your lower back.
Sorry, I ran out of room above. I wanted to tell you that a great starting point for you would be to pull your belly button up and in while on your hands and knees. This is a gentle starting exercise to engage your lower abdominals and allows you to have a visual of your belly pulling up and in if you have access to a mirror.
Good luck on this. Go slowly because those joints of your low back have been in one position for a long time, so be gentle. And please keep in touch so we have record of your progress.
Here’s to a healthier lower back and a stronger pelvic basket!!!
Tasha
Thank you Tasha, I appreciate the opportunity for this dialog. I have good flexibility due to yoga, hula hoop, etc…but most of my waking hours has been in this posture so I do understand my back being resistance to change. It was very resistant to learning WW Posture also.
My upwards muscle action is extremely good, but my pulling in muscle action is really weak. I can only manage a few seconds right now. I’ve begun to feel that this lack of balance in muscle strength is too extreme. I notice that when I stand in WW posture and pull my stomach in/up, that very action in itself pulls me forward slightly…this may very well be neutral spine for me(??)
Hopefully this is my missing link. I will work on engaging my weak muscles for a month or so and then check posture/neutral spine.
Thanks again for you help, it feels comfortable asking questions here.
And since this is a public blog, I’d like to say that I’m not disparaging the WW work, just trying to find the right balance for myself.
Thanks again, Casey
Great Casey,
Certainly any information out there that helps women get in touch with and learn about their body is great. My goal is to continue to blog on various topics that will give women that “Aha” moment and take them one step further on understanding their own body. I hope you continue to find it helpful and continue to feel more in control of your symptoms as well.
Any other questions are welcome, because they do generate a thought process that can only benefit us all.
Tasha
Tasha,
I see now that what I experienced today is what you stated in your first reply to me!
As you strengthen your transversus abdominus, it will naturally pull you closer to neutral spine, which is a more natural lordotic curve of your lower back.
I don’t know how I missed that. I think I stopped reading to try the yoga poses you suggested. Anyway, that is an Aha moment of its own, cemented by my first experiencing it for myself.
Not to be a big bother, but one more question please.
My back, at the bra line, hurts likes crazy when I do certain activities. Thirty minutes or so into washing dishes or sewing, and the pain starts and just grows. It is the only back pain I have.
Do you see this as postural? weak muscles? something else? I’d like to work on this as I work on my ab muscles.
Keep up the good work. Your openness to discussion is a blessing.
oh, got an email from a friend today. She has your DVD, gave it a great review.
Thanks again, Casey
Quick update: Had my husband test me in my present posture, and then again with pelvis rocked a slight bit forward into what feels like neutral. There was a huge difference in stability, felt rock steady a bit forward from my present posture, so I’m thinking I’ve found my neutral. It’s fascinating really, the subtle changes that make such huge differences.
Also noticed that when I lift weights above my head my pelvis automatically rocks forward just a bit. My guess is that it is self-correcting to neutral for protection?
I can engage my stomach muscles for about two minutes now. Some of this is about as easy as catching chickens, but I think I’m at least grabbing tail feathers already.
Thanks and Merry Christmas to you. Casey
First I must say that you have great body awareness, which will only benefit you, as you are right, most of these postural changes are very subtle and being able to self correct is half the battle! Isn’t it amazign how when you lift overhead, your body takes over and does this automatically. Actually, with increased body awareness, you will notice your body doing what it needs and what is good for it quite often.
To answer your first question about upper/mid back pain while washing dishes, sewing, etc. My thoughts on that are lack of stabilization of the lower vertebrae. you are just now beginning to contract your transversus abdominus that acts like a low back brace and a vacuum pulling everything up and in. The rest of your muscles including your multifidi, your inner thighs, your gluts, your hip rotators, and your quadratus lumborum act like ropes that now control this long stack of vertebrae that extend all the way up to that very heavy head of ours. All of these segments need to be strong and reactive to give us optimal stability throughout the length of our spine.
Our transversus abdominus isn’t the only answer, but it does provide a solid base of support for the bottom 5 lumbar vertebrae and our sacrum, so it is our starting point. As you lean slightly forward when washing dishes, you lean this long stack of vertebrae forward and all of your muscles have to work overtime to stop gravity from pulling you straight down to the floor – especially in your previous posture where you didn’t engage your TA and let those lower vertebrae just fall forward.
So, until your strength improves and you continue to strengthen up the spine by opening your hands up to engage the muscles of your posterior shoulders and mid/upper back, simply assist them by opening up a cupboard door and placing your foot up and in the cupboard to accept some of this weight that is leaning forward. If you don’t have a cupboard below your sink, then make sure you have a stool handy that you can place your foot on when working at the sink or counter.
That’s it from me — your questions are fantastic and will surely benefit anyone who is lucky enough to read them!
Merry Christmas to you too! I am so far behind, but I find that my last second work, when it comes to the holidays, brings a fun energy to Christmas morning! Hopefully that holds true again this year.
Tasha
[…] convinced that you should improve your posture, you need to know how to do it. According to habit, good posture is a little more complex than it seems, and is actually a “dynamic balance of the […]
Great article on posture. Many thanks.
[…] convinced that you should improve your posture, you need to know how to do it. According to habit, good posture is a little more complex than it seems, and is actually a “dynamic balance of the […]