Good Posture

What is a Good Posture

Good posture essentially refers to having a good alignment. Good alignment is apparent when you view yourself from the front, the back and sideways. Using various body parts as references, imagine having an imaginary plumb line that comes just behind the ear, the shoulder, the hips, the knees and the malleolous.

Good posture is a good habit that contributes to the well-being of the individual. The structure and function of the body are intrinsically suited for the attaining and maintaining good posture. 

Conversely, bad posture is often a habit and, unfortunately, is of rather high incidence. Postural faults have their origin the misuse of the capacities provided by the body, not in the intrinsic structure and function of the normal body. 

If faulty posture were merely an aesthetic problem, the concerns about it might be limited to superficial appearance. But postural faults that persist often gives rise to discomfort, pain, and even disability. The range of effect from discomfort to incapacitating disability is related to the severity and the persistence of the faults.  

Nowadays, we try to achieve the good posture with a wide variety of exercises. These include core strengthening training, yoga and pilates. But despite attempting to regulate posture with these exercises, their effectiveness may be limited by pre-existing postural faults or imbalances such as flat footedness, bow knees, and scoliosis upon which these exercises may have limited effectiveness or take a long time to correct into good posture. 

Many factors have to be taken into consideration of the body before specific exercises are given because each body is different. There are also considerations like differences in leg length and pelvic alignment. These factors are all considered when you come for the Rolfing session. And Vincent, your Rolfer , will also give each muscle different posture exercises which will help either to lengthen or strengthen the relevant muscles after each session. 

If you are an sportsman or someone who engages in sitting in long hours in front of the computer, you will grow to understand your body’s static, dynamic and functional posture through your Rolfing sessions. As you are going through the Rolfing session, you will also recognize the link between your injury pain, the connective tissue and your posture. The inter-relation of these factors have a significant effect on our posture. 

Ideal Posture

Basic Postural Assessment

You may like to try this at home.  Stand facing a mirror. Observing your body from the top to the bottom, observe the following characteristics. 

·       Do you notice a difference between left and right sides?  

·       Is your head tilted forward or tilted to one side?  

·       Are your shoulders level?  

·       Is one shoulder more forward or rounded than the other?  

·       Are you hips directly over the top of your knees  

·       Is your pelvis rotated?  

·       Are you knees directly over the top of your feet, or are they rotated inward or outward?  

·       Are your feet pointing straight ahead or out to the side?  

·       Are the arches of your feet high, medium, low or non existent?  

Now standing sideways to the mirror ( you may need someone to assist you)    

·       Is your shoulder directly over the top of youe hip?  

·       Is the back of your ear directly over the middle of your shoulder?  

·       Is your upper back flat, or does it have a slight or large outward curve?  

·       Is your upper back flat, or does it have a slight or large inward curve?  

·       Is your hip directly over the top of your knee?  

·       Is the middle of your knee directly over the front of your ankle?  

After doing a simple basic assessment, you might find that there are certain misalignments in your body. These can affect you while you re standing, sitting and even when you are engaging in certain exercises. You can then contact us if you have any further queries regarding your posture. 

                                                               Good posture