Everything you need to know for a posture quick fix!
From beating body pain to correcting chronic forward-slumping, we all know there are countless benefits to better posture. The problem is, with our already busy schedules - plus the added strain many of us are now facing with working from home from the same chair - it’s hard to know where to begin with such a long-term project as fixing a lifetime of bad posture habits.
So why is it important to have good posture?
There are many benefits to having great posture - apart from the fact that it gives you extra inches!
We’ve all heard that familiar statistic that communication is 93% non-verbal… and although psychologists have since explained isn’t always true in every situation, it is a good idea to remember that the way we carry ourselves can often make a powerful first impression. A tall, open posture can make others see us as confident, friendly and honest: energy that we may already be channelling - so why not extend this to the way we hold ourselves?
It’s not just linked to the way others see us, though - studies have shown that great posture can even improve our own moods! It’s no coincidence that cartoons display sad characters as slumped over or huddled, or that we use the saying, “walk with your head held high”, when we talk about pride and happiness. The way we move our bodies is a mirror for the state of our minds.
On top of this, great posture also has many physical benefits. Practising daily spine alignment exercises can prevent and minimise conditions such as scoliosis - curving of the spine - and exercises to open the shoulders and chest can reduce pain from muscle tension to headaches. Even practising good habits while sitting down for long periods of time will significantly soften the soreness we often feel at the end of a day working from home.
What can I do to help improve my posture?
Fixing our posture can feel like a mountain to climb - especially if, like us, your working life has caused you to pick up some bad habits over the years.
The good news is, it’s a lot simpler than you think! Here are some top tips for the small things you can do each day to perfect your posture.
In a moment, we’ll give you a list of the best exercises for good posture - but before that, begin with a quick posture check....
How to check your posture
Stand facing a mirror, and take a moment to notice your natural position. Do you have a tendency to slump forward? Lean on one side? Roll your shoulders? Stick your neck out forward slightly?
Don’t worry if you do notice anything - most of us have picked up some of these habits along the way! It’s always great to speak to a GP or a physiotherapist to get an expert opinion too, as they can often offer insights into the way we hold our bodies that we might not be able to spot.
To correct your standing posture, imagine you have a string - like a puppet - coming from the crown (middle) of your head, pulling you gently upwards. Keep the back of your neck lengthened, with the chin tucked slightly in, and breathe out through any tension in the shoulders. Draw the shoulder blades slightly together, imagining there is a beam of light coming from the centre of your chest, which you must shine forwards and outwards.
Single Arm Chest Press
Draw the belly button in slightly towards the spine. Wiggle your hips from side to side, then find the midpoint to keep them level. Soften your knees and make sure the feet are hip-distance apart. Keep your big toes facing forward. Drop your hands at your sides - notice if the knuckles face forward, which often means there’s a tendency to roll the shoulders forwards. Correct this by turning the hands so that the knuckles face outwards to the sides, and the thumb faces forward.
Keep coming back to this pose throughout the day - in the queue for the shops, or standing to chat to a neighbor. Avoid the temptation we all have to rest the weight on one leg, or sit cross-legged - this can build uneven muscle on one side of the body, and create tension.
You can easily build the posture check into your daily routine. Even just the small practice of starting the day thinking about the way we stand can go a long way to keep us conscious of our posture throughout the day.
Exercises that help improve your posture
1. Child Pose
Child’s pose is a grounding pose to begin your day with, calming mind and body and aligning the spine for the day ahead.
Simply get on to the floor on all fours, making sure your hips are in line with your shoulders, then breathe out, sinking your bottom back down onto your heels and stretching your fingertips away from your shoulders.
Top Tip: Try not to let your shoulders rise up around your ears. Maintain the space between your neck and shoulders - even if it means you can’t stretch your fingers forward as far.
2.Cat Cow
Cat Cow is an exercise for kick-started spine mobility, and to help you find your spine alignment.
On all fours, keeping the hips in line with the shoulders and your shoulders directly above your hands, slowly curve the spine upwards - drawing your belly button into your ribcage like a cat stretching its back. This is where this pose gets its name as ‘Cat’ pose.
Next, push the middle of your spine in the opposite direction so that your bottom sticks out and your belly button is as close to the floor as possible. This is ‘Cow’ pose.
Repeat this 5-7 times, swapping between Cat and Cow. Try to inhale on Cat and exhale on Cow.
Top Tip: After these repetitions, find the middle ground between the two poses: your spine should be flat, like a table top, with no rounding of the shoulders. Stay in this position for ten seconds or more.
3.Downward Dog
Downward dog is a favourite of many for stretching out the spine and hamstrings. From all fours, lift the knees to straighten the legs, pushing the hips backwards and up towards the ceiling. You will feel a deep stretch in the hamstrings - if it is too intense, you can lift the heels off the floor slightly and soften the knees. Try to remember to keep space between the shoulders and ears, and feel gravity pull your chest down towards the floor to keep a straight back.
Top Tip: Hold this position for as long as you like - we recommend at least thirty seconds! You can also pedal the heels up and down if it feels right, to deepen the stretch in your legs.
4. Deep squat with thoracic rotation
This exercise is brilliant for increasing mobility in your thoracic spine - the part of your spine that is in the middle of your back, and in yoga is known as your Solar Plexus (the third chakra). This chakra can become blocked and the muscles around your thoracic spine tense when sitting in a certain position for too long, making it the perfect exercise for combatting hunching all day over a computer and #WFHlife.
To begin this exercise, squat deeply (in a crouching position) - keeping your heels on the floor throughout and a straight back. Keep your chest lifted (not folding forwards), imagining that you have a beam of light shining outwards from the centre of the chest, and keep your spine extended - especially at the base. Place the palm of your left hand flat on the floor, between your feet, then raise your right hand straight up, following it with your gaze. You will feel a twist through the middle of your spine - if you don’t feel this, you may need to flatten your back, imagining that your shoulders are connected by a metal bar that runs across your back. Avoid twisting your neck too much to look at your hand: the main twist should come from further down, from the point just underneath your ribcage. Repeat 6-8 times on each side.
Top Tip: You can also try this exercise from a seated position on a chair, with both feet flat on the floor. Hold your hands in a prayer formation, palms together and elbows out, with your thumbs sticking out to rest on the Solar Plexus - on your chest at the base of the ribcage. Twist slowly from the centre, this time being careful not to move your neck at all - instead, keeping it in line with the spine. Twist gently from side to side, trying not to move from the waist down, with the movement coming from the middle of your spine. This is a lighter version of the exercise - and easy to do in the middle of the day to loosen up the spine.
5. Thread the needle (add a foam roller if you like)
Another exercise that’s perfect for increasing spine mobility, thread the needle is also known to stretch off tension in the shoulder blades. Loosening the muscles around the shoulder blades will make it easier to relax them, keeping them open and back.
Beginning on all fours, straighten your arms but keep your hips directly over your knees. Slowly thread your left arm underneath your right armpit - you will feel a stretch across the back of your shoulders. Try to remember to twist from the point just underneath your ribcage, to engage your thoracic spine. Then, slowly return your left arm back to the centre, and repeat the exercise on the opposite side. We recommend repeating this about 10 times on each side.
Top Tip: If you have a foam roller, you can use it to assist this exercise by placing it underneath the arm you are threading through - so that this arm gradually rolls underneath, rather than sliding it directly on the floor. The foam roller will gently massage tight biceps and triceps at the same time!
For more spine-twist exercises, we love fitness coach @abbycarpenter’s recent Instagram post.
6.Bridge pose
Another firm favourite here at Dragonfly Yoga Studio is the bridge pose. This is a particularly good exercise to do if you have any issues with spine alignment, such as scoliosis. It helps to train the body to keep the vertebrae in a straight line.
For this exercise, we find it really useful to imagine the spine as individual discs or vertebrae that can be moved separately. Start by lying on your back, with your knees bent and your feet flat on the floor - with a little space between the back of your heel and your bottom. Your arms can rest by your sides, or you can place them gently on top of your hips which will help you make sure that your hips are moving evenly.
Engage your core by drawing upwards through your pelvic floor muscles and sucking in your belly button. This should feel like a slight movement rather than an intense effort. Ensure that your back is flat on the floor - there should be only a very slim gap (if any gap at all) between your back and the floor. Wood or tiles are better surfaces for this exercise, if you don’t have a yoga mat!
Breathe in deeply, then breather out as you start to slowly tilt your pelvis towards you. Continue this movement by lifting your hips upwards off the floor, imagining that you are peeling the vertebrae of your spine off the floor, one by one. Continue this movement, raising your hips higher, staying aware of any wobbles in the spine. Your aim is to keep the vertebrae
in a straight vertical line as you raise them up - the muscles should be working evenly on both sides of your spine, and your hips should remain level. It can be useful to picture whether you could place a ruler flat across your two hips - if it would slip off in one direction to the right or left side, then you need to level your hips out!
Stop lifting your hips when you get to the base of your shoulder blades. Breathe in again, holding this position for a moment, before breathing out as you place the vertebrae back down on the floor, one by one. Keep your concentration on placing the vertebrae down in a straight vertical line, keeping your hips level.
Finally, as you practise the exercise, take notice of what happens to your shoulders - do they tense up around your ears as you concentrate? The strength for this exercise should come from your core - so breathe out through any other muscles around your shoulders which are trying to compensate by tensing up.
Top Tip: At first there is a lot to remember with this exercise, but once you start practising you’ll find you can easily get the hang of it. The key thing to remember is, the slower the better! Doing this exercise slowly helps you isolate each part of your spine.
7. Isometric Rows
This exercise can be done sitting at your desk, so it’s a great one to do at intervals throughout the day. It will build strength in your upper back, needed to keep your shoulders rolled back and your chest open.
Simply sit upright in a chair, bending your arms so that your fingers face forward and your palms face each other. Take an inhale here, then exhale as you draw your elbows back into the chair and squeeze your shoulder blades together. Hold the squeeze for a few seconds, then inhale to release. Repeat this 15-20 times!
Top Tip: Repeat this exercise again throughout the day, to build up the upper back strength you need for open, relaxed shoulders…without even noticing!
What are the benefits of posture correctors?
For a more intense fix, there are a number of posture correctors available. You could try a posture brace, which will help to reset your muscle memory so that you sit naturally straighter. Definitely seek the advice of your GP and have a look at plenty of reviews before you buy - as different correctors are designed to focus on different areas, so it’s important
that you select a posture brace that’s right for you. We love Good Housekeeping’s review of the 11 Best Posture Correctors, which gives details about the top correctors on the market and which areas they are designed for.
What’s our biggest secret for perfecting posture?
...Little and often! The more you do these exercises, the easier it will become to remember to stand straight. You will notice progress in your posture checks each morning - we love taking a couple of snaps occasionally, so that we can track and celebrate our progress over time.
Yoga and pilates classes are a brilliant way to consistently build posture exercises into your life, while also building core strength and flexibility. Start your yoga journey today, by checking out the classes on our timetable. For posture-busters, we love Ella’s pilates classes or our Iyengar Yoga classes with Jacqueline, with strong emphasis on posture and alignment.
We look forward to welcoming you at the new, improved Studio, or seeing you online!