All our lives, people have warned us to sit up straight or risk permanently damaging our spines. While keeping your back straight is a good notion, posture is more about how we feel than how we seem. Since every person's body is unique, a pose that works for everyone is probably not going to be helpful for you.
The most crucial aspect of sitting is to make yourself comfortable. That doesn't imply that you may spend the entire day curled up on your bed, but you shouldn't feel forced into one particular, fixed position. Although it's best to prevent slumping or hunching your shoulders, your comfort is ultimately what matters most.
Although it won't help, poor posture is often held responsible for more discomfort than it actually causes. In actuality, poor posture frequently arises from pain in other parts of the body. Consider how tensed and slumped your shoulders become on a chilly day. The majority of this stress will show up in your back, but while the discomfort may be there, that is not the source of the issue.
For many other bodily components, the same is true. Back discomfort may result from foot pain since it may alter the way you walk and stand, which will change your posture. You can spend a lot of time leaning to one side due to hip pain, which will hurt your back. Looking at the source of the pain rather than the location of it is the only effective strategy to treat back pain.
There aren't many things we can do to improve ourselves that won't involve making a conscious effort. It's good that you're trying to get better, but sadly it won't make a difference in your posture.
The issue with actively trying to correct your posture is that it simply doesn't work. No matter how hard you try, as soon as you go to another work, you will forget to maintain your position. So it won't work unless you intend to focus solely on your posture with your mind.
We can neither grow nor change our posture in a single day. The development of good or bad posture happens gradually over time, just like so many other aspects of our physical health. For this reason, many people believe that by forcing their bodies to maintain what they perceive to be the "perfect posture," theirs would eventually improve. The opposite is actually true.
We are not moving about enough, which leads to many of the pains and issues we identify with poor posture, such as stiffness. The back is no different from any other body component in that it will grow more rigid if it is immobile for an extended period of time. Moving about more is what you should be doing. Like the rest of you, your back needs to move, whether that means occasionally switching seats or taking a brief stroll.
Yes, it's annoying that your screen is lower than you prefer and yes, we'd all like to switch out the office chairs for some that are more comfy. However, it is useless to blame your workspace for your poor posture. You are the one with the sore back at the end of the day.
While you can't change a lot about your desk, there are certain things you can do to make it better. To start, your screen needs to be level with your eyes; otherwise, you'll spend the most of the day slouching. Don't undervalue the power of your screen; even a tiny, scarcely perceptible slouch might cause severe repercussions on your back. Additionally, it's crucial to try to place your feet firmly on the ground, just below your knees, which ought to be bent 90 degrees.
These myths are frequently shared by well-intentioned people, and while many of them are imaginative reinterpretations of the facts, they are not all wholly without foundation. The key takeaway is that your posture should eventually be relaxed and unforced. Consider visiting a physiotherapist if you've tried correcting your posture but are still in pain.
Check out our latest collection and don't forget to tag us @beposture!