Your Definitive Guide to Understanding and Improving Your Posture (Part 6)
The key to feeling good is about being able to move in and out of various postures
If you have read the previous articles in this series I am sure one question has been at the top of your mind: “But Noah, whenever I slump forward I feel tension in my neck and shoulders and they get really stiff, doesn’t that mean it’s bad for me?” No, and let me explain why. The reason why you feel stiff and tight is not a direct result of a specific posture per se, rather, the lack of movement inherent in sitting or standing in one position for long periods of time. Our bodies thrive off of movement. Have you ever heard the term movement is medicine? It is literally true. Have you ever heard the term motion is lotion? That one too. Blood flow is incredibly important for our body because it delivers oxygen and nutrients to cells where it is needed, without which our cells could not create energy or repair themselves. But we can improve blood flow incredibly effectively really easily. Going for a walk forces stimulates blood flow incredibly effectively. Same thing of exercise of any kind. Move your body and you will feel good. It’s just that simple.
Our joints require movement in a similar way. Our joints don’t get blood flow the same way our muscles do, the only way the connective tissue that makes up a joint gets nutrients is through a viscous liquid surrounding the capsule called synovial fluid. This fluid requires movement for it to circulate properly. So when we don’t move, our joints don’t get the nutrients they need to repair.
On top of that, consciously attempting to force ‘perfect’ posture consciously all the time creates a ton of tension in the muscles responsible for keeping us upright. Any time we consciously move our body we have to squeeze or contract a muscle to do so. Keeping a muscle squeezed for long periods of time is not something you want to do because this muscular tension will cause a reduction in blood flow, which will make you feel stiff and horrible. Have you talked to anyone who is really neurotic about their posture? They always complain about their upper back being incredibly tight all the time, and how they just need to stretch or foam roll more. Stretching will relax those muscles, sure, but not if you just go back to squeezing them again immediately after you’re done stretching.
In the end you’ve got a catch 22. If you are planning to sit for 8 hours straight you can expect to be stiff and tight no matter what. You can be stiff or tight from squeezing the muscles in your upper back for 8 hours, or stiff and tight from being slumped over for 8 hours. What’s the solution? Movement. The reality is that humans were not designed to sit in the same position for 8 hours a day, but we can mitigate some of these negative effects by sitting in a variety of different positions throughout the day. Try sitting upright for 15 minutes, and then slumped forward. Try twisting and rotating and moving your spine as much as possible. Try to go for a brief walk every hour. Whatever you can do to get your body moving in and out of various postures is going to leave you feeling the best at the end of the day.
