The Paradigm of Posture

If you were to ask anyone what they thought good posture meant you would likely hear the common answers of head up, shoulders back, chest out, etc., etc. Now I am not saying that this is incorrect, what I am saying is that this is incomplete.  The paradigm that we culturally share when it comes to posture is one that is static and relates to both standing and sitting. The shift that I would like to suggest in this paradigm is to get posture up and moving!!!!!  Now posture isn’t only considered a static concept, but also carries over to the way you MOVE your body and breathe.

The way I evaluate posture is by looking at the alignment of your body as you move and as you breath in certain positions. Big difference! This dynamic head-to-toe observation contrasts with the static assessment of seated and standing posture.  It brings posture to LIFE or maybe i should say...It brings LIFE to posture.  Ultimately, we now know that if you can move and breathe with proper form, standing, sitting, running AND walking with proper form is much less laborious.

Our posture is a reflection of the way we experience the world we live in.  It is the result and response to events we endure both physical and emotional in life.  Of course, if I twist my ankle, I am going to be walking with a compensated gait for a couple of days up to several weeks depending on how much damage occurred, but how do you think living in an abusive relationship for way too long might affect your posture?  Have you ever considered that?

Whether it is an actual physical threat or a perceived emotional threat, the tension that both create is still tension on the body that alters tissue and sabotages movement.  This process can happen at a young age if you don’t know any better and neglect the care of your body, or the effects of this tension and movement distortion can be managed.  Point is age is not the most powerful influence on the decline of our movement quality...Neglected coping strategies are.  A negative experience in life can lead to negative painful movement experiences.  Thankfully, there is now a way to reverse the process and by optimizing your experience of posture and movement, and of course your diet and mindfulness, we can now contribute to optimizing the experience of your posture.