Beat the slouch epidemic

Good posture will straighten you out

Are you sitting bolt upright while reading this? Give yourself a pat on the back. Posture problems are on the rise with excessive device use, and our increasingly inactive lifestyles, What’s also changed is that many more of us have switched to working from home, often from our sofa or the kitchen table, leaving us slumped, slouched and hunched with alarming health consequences. According to a report by the charity Versus Arthritis, four in five people who began working remotely have developed some kind of musculoskeletal pain, while Boots the chemists reports sales of pain relief have doubled in the past year.

HEALTH GAINS

Carrying yourself well looks good but adopting a straight stance has huge health advantages too. Back pain relief, better breathing and improved digestion are just some of the physical benefits that experts pin on proper posture. Women’s health physiotherapist Claire Cook (thebodymechanics.co.uk) says that correct posture is particularly important because it keeps the bones and joints in alignment, so that the muscles are being used optimally.

‘It helps to reduce a build-up of tension in the muscles, which will eventually lead to pain and abnormal wearing of joint surfaces,’ she explains. In short, bad posture poses the risk of physical problems as we age and can potentially lead to the need for surgery. ‘Adjusting your posture is also a way to feel more energised and look instantly younger,’ adds Claire. ‘When people stoop and slouch, it really adds on the years.’

STAND CORRECTED

So what are we doing wrong? One of the main causes of terrible posture is that as a nation, we’re simply not moving enough. ‘A sedentary lifestyle, being slumped over a device, remaining in the same hunched position for too long and not exercising enough, is to blame,’ says Claire. ‘And as we get older, our muscles become weaker and so the effects of gravity pulling us down into a stooped, collapsed position are harder to overcome.’

Considering most daily activities involve only flexing the spine forward, it’s no wonder the shape of our frame suffers from this repetition. ‘Whether we’re working at a desk, looking after children, driving or cooking, it all tends to be done in the forward flex spine position. We actually do very little in life where you take the spine the other way – lifting backwards – which would balance things out,’ says Lynne Robinson, founder of Body Control Pilates (bodycontrolpilates.com). Bad posture also creeps up on us, which is why it’s easy to ignore. ‘You don’t get bad posture overnight, yet it’s insidious,’ says Lynne. ‘The way you hold your body becomes habitual, until you realise you have a problem.’

‘A sedentary lifestyle is to blame’