To Your Health December, 2011 (Vol. 05, Issue 12)

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Other things that maybe harming our posture: I think our moods influence our posture; a person who is depressed has a classic hunched over looking appearance. Even our exercise choices need to be scrutinized.

If you perform the same exercise over and over such as cyclists who spend 2-3 hours riding their bicycles in a position of lumbar flexion develop a reduced lumbar curve; long distance swimmers who perform repeated motions may experience shoulder pain from altered posture and faulty biomechanics. For any person who sits eight hours a day hunched over a computer, the last thing that person needs to do is spend time hunched over a bicycle for recreation or pounding out bench presses at the gym.

The shoes you wear daily are important to maintain - worn out soles could contribute to foot and ankle malpositions leading to altered posture; foot pronation issues may require an insert or orthotic - this can help improve gait and posture by correcting faulty biomechanics.

I always recommend that we improve our ability to take deep breaths and expand the lungs capacity. Using the cue "breath into the back" helps improve posture.

Let me be perfectly clear – you can improve your posture – first become aware of your posture. Second requires training your body with simple exercise maneuvers and progressing to more challenging strength exercises.

Here are some simple exercises to get you started:

1. Engage in daily use of the foam roll to provide self-myofascial release and self massage. Spend 3-5 minutes rolling out the thoracic spine and shoulders.
   


2. Make sure you know how to go from "sitting to standing" properly. Stand upright (tall spine) imagining a sting attached to the base of the skull is lifting you upright, rather than leaning forward at the waist when going from sitting to standing. Once you are up, raise the hands above the head with the arms extended and with the elbows in line with the ears. Lean or bend backward as far as possible, making sure the hips go forward and the arms go backwards simultaneously. Repeat this maneuver 10 times.
   


3. Perform "Chair Decompression": The person sits in an upright chair with their arms behind them, slightly bent, hands on the seat of the back of the chair. They push downward, straightening the arms and leaving the buttocks in the chair, unloading the trunk and spine. Keep the arms externally rotated; this moves the upper body into something similar to Brugger's.
   


4. Perform Brugger's relief position: Sit at the edge of a chair; Put your knees apart (wide) and your feet under the knees: Arch your back; Rotate your arms outward so your palms face forward; Separate your fingers and point your thumb backward; Tuck in your chin; Hold this position while taking a deep breath in though your abdomen. HOLD the position for 5 seconds, release for 3 seconds, Repeat 3-5 times.
   


5. Perform Cobra: Laying face down on the floor-in prone position, have arms beside your hips. Activate the core by drawing in your navel towards spine and squeezing the glutes. With your core and glutes activated, lift the chest off the floor, lift arms up and back towards the hips rotating thumbs towards the ceiling. Pause momentarily at the top of the lift then return to starting position; at all times keeping the chin tucked into the chest and the feet on the floor. Upon completion of the movement, repeat. Don't over emphasize arching of the back to the lift the chest off floor. Only lift to where you are comfortable - no lower back pain should be felt. Note: hold for 2-3 seconds. Repeat 5 times.
   


6. Core training including the abdominals, lower back, gluteus, and hips is important for pelvis alignment.
   


7. Strength training exercises include A) Bent over back rows. Bend over from the hips with the torso parallel to the floor. Pull either bands or free weights up, squeezing your shoulder blades as close together as you go). B) Standing or seated rowing exercises - start with your arms in front of the body holding on to a band or cable machine. Pull straight back bending at the elbows with the hands moving back along the sides of the body. C) Back Flys - Gripping on to a cable machine or bands, extend your arms into a wing span position.

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Jeffrey Tucker, DC, is a doctor of chiropractic and rehabilitation specialist who integrates chiropractic, exercise and nutrition into his practice in West Los Angeles. You can sign up for his newsletter at DrJeffreyTucker.com.