Top Health Benefits of Muscle Toning in Body Posture

It is proved that the usual body position in space affects well-being and health. According to the American Journal of Pain Management, posture affects all essential physiological functions of the body, from breathing to humoral regulation. It can also affect back and head pain, mood, blood pressure, pulse, and pulmonary capacity. There are even studies proving the relation between thoracic misalignment and mortality trends.

What is good posture?

From a scientific point of view, posture is a biomechanical model of the human body that maintains an upright position. In general, when we talk about correct posture, we mean a particular optimal position and alignment of the body in space relative to the gravitational force under the continuous influence. This is the usual posture of a naturally standing person who can keep the body and head straight without unnecessary active stress.

A person with a correct posture has an easy gait. The shoulders are slightly lowered and laid back, and the chest is symmetrical about the midline, has no sinks and protrusions, the abdomen is tucked up, the legs are extended at the knee joints without overextension back.

Respiratory system

Poor posture can interfere with the lungs’ ability to expand on inspiration, which means that the body runs the risk of not receiving the required amount of oxygen and will constantly be in conditions of artificial hypoxia, which will primarily affect the supply of oxygen to the brain.

It is common when a person has an increased thoracic kyphosis, especially pronounced in a sitting position. According to a 2006 study published in the journal Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation on the effect of a sitting position on lung capacity and lumbar lordosis, posture and lung function clearly relate.

Digestive system

The optimal location of the vertebral segments has a beneficial effect on the work of all internal organs, including the digestive system. Correct posture allows the abdominal organs to return to their natural position without excessive compression, which can interfere with the normal flow and functioning of the gastrointestinal system. Poor posture, such as sitting hunched over, can trigger acid reflux, constipation, and even hernias.

Emotional background

Posture also affects mood, and conversely, mood can affect posture. Pay attention – when you feel good, you feel happy, when you are overwhelmed with joyful emotions, your back, as a rule, is straightened, the posture is open, you want to breathe with your full open chest, you feel yourself on the rise. In contrast, people who are depressed and have chronic pain often sit hunched over or hunched over. The posture itself and the whole body speaks about what is happening at the level of emotions or physical sensations.

Posture work

If you have postural disorders, then there is only one way out in this situation: you need to return the spine to its normal position. In general, it is best to avoid serious posture problems rather than fix them later.

A great way to do this is to do a set of physical exercises specially selected for each type of posture: You can buy gym equipment by Tonic Performance and build a small home gym. In addition, swim in the pool, do aqua aerobics, yoga, Pilates, walk a lot, and generally lead an active lifestyle. After all, if you think about it, a modern person sits all the time: at the table, when eating or watching TV, at work at the computer, on the way to work, or sits behind the wheel or in public transport.

As a general guideline, we offer a series of simple exercises to develop the skill of correct posture or correct non-critical changes in posture. The main difficulty lies not in the activities themselves but in forcing yourself to do them daily.

Conclusion

Correct posture allows you to keep your muscles and joints in good shape and adequately distribute the load throughout the body. Thus, it contributes to the prevention of diseases of the musculoskeletal system. With good posture, a correct location and condition of internal organs are ensured, the lungs expand better, breathe more accessible, more oxygen enters the tissues and organs. Watch your posture and be healthy.