STAND UP STRAIGHT, your posture is making you look short and fat
Ladies and gentlemen,
As this wonderful politically correct illustration demonstrates, poor posture makes women (and men…shudder) look short and fat in their leotards.
And who wants that.
Not me.
before
after
Okay, I still look like Shrek, but did you see those buns O’ steel.
Why does Poor Posture make You look Fat?
Two of the most common postural flaws are:
- Anterior Pelvic Tilt
Which leads to Lordosis
Anterior Pelvic tilt & Lordosis manifests themselves as a protruding Gut and Butt.
- Kyphosis
Kyphosis and a ‘forward head’ position makes you look hunched over and appear shorter.
When you put the two together, you end up with the typical North American slouched posture.
Along with the whole looking fat and short thing, you are likely to suffer from headaches, neck pain, bicep tendinitis, dry mouth, pain under the shoulder blades, mid back pain, lower back pain, lateral knee pain, torn knee ligaments, hamstring tears, plantar fasciitis and sciatica.
Yay!
This is what you should look like.
Here is a postural analysis video that should provide additional detail.
So What Do I Do About It?
The short answer is that you need to stretch some muscles:
- Psoas
- Iliacus
- Rectus Femoris
- Tensor Fascia Latae
- Spinal Erectors (special care here)
- Pectoralis Major
- Latissimus Dorsi
- Teres Major
- Anterior Deltoid
- Subscapularis
- Upper Trapezius
- Levator Scapulae
- Suboccipitals
- Sternocleidomastoid
and strengthen other muscles:
- Rectus Abdominis
- External Obliques
- Glutes
- Hamstrings
- Mid/Lower Trapezius
- Rhomboids
- Pectoralis Minor
The long answer I will provide in a future post.
My Upper Trapezius and Levator Scapulae are getting tight sitting here at my desk hunting and pecking out this post.
.
If you are interested in a better way to eat, click here or here or here.
Thanks.
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9 Comments
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lizetteb1
February 1, 2012 at 7:25 am
This is the best post on the topic that I have seen. I know my posture leaves much to be desired and I try to get my kids to watch their posture too. Doesn’t help that we are a pretty short family to start with! LOL!
Pam Allen Pilates Instruction
October 28, 2011 at 11:46 pm
Good thing we're all doing Pilates!
Pam Allen Pilates Instruction
October 28, 2011 at 11:42 pm
Great article on why you should stand up straight…check it out!
Thomas Johnson
March 13, 2011 at 4:22 pm
Great post. I’m definitely keen to see another post that goes into the question “so what do I do about it?”
David
March 12, 2011 at 10:11 pm
I love your post. You have enough detail about proper posture that anyone can understand. I was going to put something like this on my site haven’t had time.
Keep up the great work.
Pingback: Open Gym tomorrow «
Nancy
October 22, 2010 at 5:43 pm
I have horrible posture and am well aware of it’s effects on my appearance overall, but I’m just awful at correcting it. A close friend of mine is an acupuncturist
and said fascial tissue can get “stuck” after so many years of habitualbad posture, and she suggested 10 or 12 sessions of Rolfing or myofascial massage. Since I have been losing a lot of weight and exercising a lot this last year, some regular body work might be a good idea anyway. I’d love to hear if anyone has any experience with the above types or anything else.
Travis
January 18, 2010 at 10:18 pm
I have been having back pain for years. 37 and a runner about 15 miles a week. i sit at a desk during the day. thought it was the running maybe it is the sitting. this article makes a lot of sense about the tilt of the pelvis. helpful stuff. thanks.
lacy
May 29, 2008 at 3:25 pm
well I’ll be damned.
welcome to the wonderful world of posture!
that was an interesting post…and lots of food for thought. there’s more to “stand up straight” then i originally thought.