How to Improve Your Posture By Natalia Corrales Osorio

How to Improve Your Posture

Good posture is an easy and very important way to maintain a healthy mind and body. When you practice correct posture, your body is in alignment. This can alleviate common problems such as back or neck pain, headaches, and fatigue.

1.    Identify good posture. Good posture is keeping your body in alignment. Good posture while standing is a straight back, aligned shoulders, head up, chest out, stomach in. If you can imagine a straight line from your ear through your shoulder, hip, knee, to the middle of your ankle.

2.    Train your muscles to do the work. Exercises that strengthen the muscles through your back and shoulders will help you to maintain good posture, it's important to build "muscle memory" so that you naturally maintain correct posture without fatigue. This means that you should exercise your chest as much as your back, up and down. This will help with correct posture.

3.    Practice yoga. Yoga is excellent for posture, and for your health in general. It can also improve your balance. Yoga works your all muscles, making them stronger and helping to keep a adequate body alignment.

4.    Teach your body what it feels like. Stand with your back against a  wall, with the your head, your shoulders, and your butt just touching it. If you feel uncomfortable, don't worry, as you develop good posture habits and train your body, you will feel better.

5.    Take standing breaks. Even if you're using perfect posture while you are sitting in the best chair in the world, you need to stand up and stretch, ewalk, do little exercises, or simply stand there for minutes. Your body was not designed to sit all day.

6.    Think string. Always imagine that a string coming from your head is pulling you gently toward the ceiling. Visualization techniques can guide your sense of adequate position.

7.    Avoid the slouch when walking. Be sure always of walk as if you had a book on your head and you can’t drop.

8.    Use color. If you need help remembering to keep your posture, think of a unique object or color. Every time that you think in this object, check your posture.

        

      Natalia Corrales Osorio