What really is the best posture for us?
If you were to search ‘what is the ideal posture?’, you’ll get sites like WebMD telling you to “straighten up, like your head touches the sky”, and to “stand with your shoulders back, knees straight, and belly tucked in”. This isn’t something you haven’t heard though, I’m sure. Even as kids, we are told not to slouch. We’re told this with the understanding that it will put tension and stress on our bodies, but is that the truth?
Posture is a reaction to the force of gravity, an automatic and unconscious position. Physically speaking, each posture loads tissues differently. This historical ideal of what is a ‘good’ posture was due to severe kyphosis (excessive rounding in the upper spine) being a sign of tuberculosis, but soon, class and race superiority became intertwined as well.
A little history on posture
Going back as far as Ancient Greece, we can see the first claims that an upright posture was linked to ‘divinity and intelligence’. Military drills going back to the 16th century involved rigid upright postures to enforce discipline. The 18th century saw the rise of posture correctors, with corsets being an example to showcase social status. During WWII, propaganda posters suggested that those in the Eastern world were considered weaker and more corrupt. Even in 2019, 544 physiotherapists were surveyed to choose the best posture while sitting, and over 70% said an upright position was best.
Upright posture – is it right?
There is little to no evidence that an upright posture is best. There’s been a study of 1108 Australian teenagers with forward head posture and no signs of neck pain, and similar studies have the same evidence on back pain with slumping or awkward postures. Certain conditions, such as symptomatic spinal stenosis, can exacerbate pain when in an upright position.
When someone who naturally sits like a shrimp (no judgement, I love to be a shrimp) suddenly stands upright with shoulders back, this can set off their parasympathetic nervous system (fight or flight), which puts more stress on the body and increases the risk of nerve impingement, so this upright position isn’t even sustainable for some people. So there is no true ideal posture because it varies across bodies, abilities and our life contexts, but is there a bad posture?
In short: yes.
Any sustained posture for long periods is bad for us. Two separate studies have found that sustained postures can significantly contribute to pain. Office workers experience 17-20% of all neck issues compared to any other type of labour job, and 34-49% have repeat neck pain, even if they take time off/do physio – because, surprise, they’re going back to that sustained posture. The more your body sits in a position for a long time, the more your body reads this tightness over time as “this must be the position we’re going to be in for the rest of our life”.
Movement is key
What we should be aiming for is a natural ‘stack’ of our spine, which is different for all of us. But how do we shift to a place where our body currently tells us it isn’t safe? Well, more movement. Hormones are released when we move, and the more movement, the more information we can give ourselves to see what works and what doesn’t. Just like a Bop It toy, twist your spine, round your spine, and extend your spine.
Our bodies seek stability, hence the shrimp positions we can sometimes end up in, but still crave variety and change, so adding movement in can be a reset for our bodies and brains. Not to mention it will keep our joints feeling good!
Top tips for your nervous system and spine
Movement doesn’t feel completely doable, especially if we have a desk job, or a deadline looming over us so let me give you some tips that I have put into practice the last few weeks that have helped me. I will say though, the biggest thing is listening to what your body wants, never force it if it doesn’t feel good.
- Task interruption. Every 30 minutes, move for 30 seconds- I’ll put a timer on for this, but within a week my body already knew when that 30 minutes was up (I started feeling antsy in my seat), that is when I’ll grab some water, or just stand and do a quick stretch before sitting back down. If every 30 minutes doesn’t work – look for natural stopping points like when meetings end, or after you finished a task.
- Task substitution. Now depending where you work this may not be doable, but alternating between standing and sitting, I’ve found even lying on my stomach for 20 minutes while doing work can feel real nice. This is alternating what body parts are moving.
- Increasing incidental exercise. Take a walk or just standing during breaks, take the stairs over elevator, or take the bike instead of driving. Turning on the 5-minute Stretch from the Energy Break playlist in The Garden also works in a pinch.
Perfect posture doesn’t exist, it’s about recognizing patterns and giving yourself options. An upright posture is great for reasons such as mental – studies have linked it to an increase in confidence, reduction of negative mood and as a behavioural strategy to help build resilience to stress, but it is not the end all be all that we have to strive for. Building awareness for your posture can take time, and constantly being aware of it isn’t the goal, just moving every once in a while is to not only help our muscles and joints, but our nervous system stay calm.
PS – Want to Go Deeper?
If you want to stretch out your body and feel good in it, check out The Garden, my on-demand library. We’ve got a full Posture Workshop from March ready for you inside to learn even more, including some stretches to get your body feeling right.
