5 ways bad posture can make you unhealthy

Suffering from an incesant back or neck ache? Well, it might be your posture. Here is a list of things that you might be doing wrong.

By: Shiphrah Lakka | | Updated: March 25, 2015 12:39 pm

Do you slouch while you work at your desk or walk with a hunched back? Well the way you carry yourself, that is your posture has a dramatic effect on your health. When you intentionally or unintentionally repeat poor posture every day, your body s structure slowly changes and adapts to it, resulting in misalignment and pain. While we all may tend to make these mistakes without realising it, there are a few postural mistakes that can take a toll on your health. Here are 5 of those postures that you should know about. Also Read - Rheumatoid arthritis can be debilitating: Say goodbye to joint pain with curcumin in your diet

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Bad posture #1: Hunchback This is when your back forms a C shape at the top of your spinal column. Your spine is supposed to be straight, but becomes curved at this spot. Also Read - Get quick relief from sciatica pain with these stretches and exercises

Cause: Sitting for long hours with bad posture. For instance, sitting hunched over a computer screen.

Symptoms: Pain in the neck, shoulder, and back.

Complications: The bad sitting posture causes the chest muscles to tighten leading to an excessively curved back in the upper back or thoracic region. The muscles of the upper back loosen and eventually weaken.

Solution:

Upper back foam rolling to increase the mobility of your upper back. Lie on a foam roller placed in the middle of your back and perpendicular to the spine. With your face facing upwards, keep your hands behind your head and bend your upper back over the roller five times. You can repeat for each segment of your upper back by adjusting the roller.

Prone cobra to strengthen the weak muscles in your back. Lie with your face down, arms at the sides, and palms down. Slowly lift your chest and hands off the floor, and press your shoulder blades together, keeping your chin down. Hold this position for five seconds. Do this ten times. Repeat two to three sets daily. Yoga can help correct your posture too. Poses like bhujangasana also help strengthen your back and are extremely effective.

Bad posture #2: Rounded Shoulder

Cause: Sitting with a bad posture while typing, or imbalanced exercise regime involving excessive chest muscle workouts.

Symptoms: Pain in the neck, shoulder, back

Complications: Sitting in that position causes the chest muscles to tighten, causing the shoulders to rotate forward. Apart from that the muscles of the upper back weakens and loosen.

Solution: Stretching to relax the tight chest muscles: Place your arm against the wall on the side of a doorway in a high-five position, with your elbow bent 90 degrees. Take a step through the doorway and you will feel a stretch in your chest and the front of your shoulders. Hold this position for 30 seconds. Repeat 2 to 3 sets of this, four times daily.

Exercise to strengthen the muscle of the back (trapezius): Lie on the floor, face-down, and place both arms at a 90 degree angle in a high-five position. Maintaining the same angle at the elbow, lift both arms by dragging the shoulders backwards and pressing the shoulder blades towards each other. Hold this position for five seconds. Repeat 2 to 3 sets of this, four times daily. Here are some exercises for strengthening the back.

Bad posture #3: Over-Pronated Feet This is where the arch of your feet are flat causing your ankles to bend slightly inwards or outwards depending on your stance.

Cause: Pregnancy, obesity, inappropriate footwear can weaken the arch resulting in over-pronation of the foot and sometimes flat feet.

Symptoms: Medial knee pain, hip pain, and low back pain.

Complications: It adds pressure on the foot, tightens the calf muscles, and may rotate the knees towards each other. It often results in conditions such as Metatarsalgia (pain in the toes of the feet), heel spurs (growth of an extra bone from the heel), plantar fasciitis (pain in the sole of the foot), and bunions (a condition where the part where the great toe joins the rest of the foot, points outwards).

Solution:

The best solution is orthotics (devices used to correct the alignment), especially if the arch has fallen or you have a ‘flat foot’. If the arch is weak, walking or running barefoot may help in strengthening the arches. However, orthotics is the best option, so consult your doctor before proceeding.

Bad posture #4: Anterior Pelvic Tilt A condition where a person’s pelvis tilts forward, pushing his/her torso forward bending the back in an odd position.

Cause: Extended periods of sitting without stretching which tightens the hip flexors (muscles which allow you to move your thighs up towards your abdomen).

Symptoms: Pain in the lower back (this tilt causes your stomach to protrude outwards even though you may not have any belly fat).

Complications: Hip flexors tighten and glutes (muscles of the buttock) become weak.

Solution: Stretch to relax hip flexors: Kneel on one knee and tighten your gluteal muscles (muscles in the buttocks) on the leg you are kneeling on. You will feel a stretch in the front part of your hip. Raise the arm on the same kneeling side and stretch towards the opposite direction. Hold this position for 30 seconds, relax, and repeat again 4 times.

Exercise to strengthen gluteal muscles: Lie down on your back and bend your knees to about 90-degrees. Squeeze your gluteal muscles together and push your hip upwards till your body forms a straight line from knees to shoulders. Hold this position for 5 seconds, relax, and repeat three times. Do this 10 times daily.

Bad posture #5: Forward Head Cause: Sitting hunched over in an office chair for long hours, staring at a computer. Take a look at more health problems related to computer and other gadgets.

Symptoms: Pain in the neck

Complications: Tightness of the muscles of the back of the neck, along with the muscles of the upper back (levator and upper trapezius).

Solution:

Stretches to loosen tight muscles in the back of the neck: Perform daily head nods. Move your head, dropping your chin downwards and in towards your neck. This stretches the back of the neck. Hold the position for 5 seconds and repeat ten times.

Exercise to strengthen the weak muscles in the front of the neck: Lie on the floor, face-up, and lift your head up from the floor. Hold this position for five seconds and repeat ten times. Although these are just a few of the many postural problems people experience today, we hope this article helps you become more aware of your posture and make conscious decisions everyday to develop and maintain good posture habits.

Image source: Getty Images

Published : February 3, 2015 3:40 pm | Updated:March 25, 2015 12:39 pm

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