How Posture Affects Your Health

posture and massage therapy dreamclinic seattleA common phrase heard throughout childhood is, “Sit up straight!” This postural reminder makes regular appearances in the classroom, at the dinner table and is a ubiquitous presence through middle and high school. The continual postural encouragement is dispensed to encourage healthy growth and function of the body, as well as a projection of self-confidence from the individual.

What exactly is good posture?
Good posture supports the performance of one’s daily activities with a functional range of motion and a positive flow of circulation. The bones are arranged properly in reference to one another, and the muscles that support the skeleton move freely within a normal range of motion and receive proper levels of circulation to help them do their jobs.

The American Chiropractic Association says, human beings “do not consciously maintain normal posture. Instead, certain muscles do it for us, and we don’t even have to think about it. Several muscle groups, including the hamstrings and large back muscles, are critically important in maintaining good posture. While the ligaments help to hold the skeleton together, these postural muscles, when functioning properly, prevent the forces of gravity from pushing us over forward. Postural muscles also maintain our posture and balance during movement.”

What causes poor posture?
Poor posture can be a product of many variables – weak muscles, injury, stress, improper footwear, lengthy sitting  and a growing use of technology such as laptops and tablets. In all of these instances, muscles in one or more areas of the body become shortened and less flexible than the opposing muscles that work together to keep the body upright. The tightness creates asymmetry, and posture becomes imbalanced.

For example, extended hours spent sitting in a car or at a desk, hunched forward over a steering wheel/ keyboard, shortens the muscles in the front of the shoulders. When these muscles tighten, circulation is limited and range of motion is restricted. The forward rounding of shoulders and associated muscle imbalance can lead to spinal misalignment, fatigue or pain.

As the body aims to protect itself and avoid pain, the imbalanced posture perpetuates itself. The neck is pulled forward and down, straining muscles in the upper back and shoulders, causing tension and often headaches. The rib cage is tilted forward, compressing the abdominal area, prompting digestive imbalance. Pain may emerge in the neck, shoulders or back.

How can bad posture be corrected?

Massage. Therapeutic massage lengthens muscles that have been shortened, improving circulation, reducing pain and allowing the body to resume a normal range of motion. Stress and tension are relieved, and internal organs are better able to perform their essential functions.

Exercise. Regular exercise helps lengthen and strengthen muscles and improve range of motion. It increases circulation and oxygenation, improving cognitive function and eliminating waste products from the body.

Stretch. Daily stretching helps lengthen shortened muscles and keep the muscles and joints supple. As we age, connective tissues become less flexible, so the old adage proves true: if you don’t move it, you lose it.

Yoga. Yoga stretches and strengthens the body, working muscles that counterbalance one another. It builds core strength and balance, encouraging and maintaining the habits of good posture.

Correcting poor posture requires undoing the hardening, or fibrosis, of the muscles that have been habitually contracted, allowing them to relax and the bones to move back into place. Perhaps a simple concept, but not an easy task.  Swedish massage can help increase circulation and release chronically held areas. Deep tissue massage helps wake up the body and reverse some of the fibrosis in the tissue.  And other bodywork techniques can further precipitate postural adjustments.

Correct Breathing is Essential to Good Health

In The Healer’s Manual, author Ted Andrews outlines four tenets for maintaining health and preventing disease: proper diet, proper exercise, proper rest, and proper breathing.1 We don’t often hear breathing mentioned as an important aspect of well-being. But just as breath is essential to life, correct breathing is essential to optimal health.

When acute stress occurs, the body’s normal physiological adaptation is a shortened, rapid breathing pattern in the upper chest cavity. As high stress levels persist, this abbreviated breath pattern becomes a chronic habit, and produces a domino effect of negative consequences in the body.

deep_breathing

Shallow breathing significantly increases the amount of carbon dioxide the body exhales, markedly altering the body’s pH and creating a condition called respiratory alkalosis. “Increased pH (alkalosis) causes smooth muscle constriction. Smooth muscles surround the blood vessels and the gut and are embedded throughout connective tissue. As a result, one of the first effects of alkalosis is that the diameter of blood vessels reduces, impeding normal circulation, increasing blood pressure, as well as altering fascial tone throughout the body and interfering with normal peristaltic function in the intestines, thus leading commonly to irritable bowel syndrome or constipation. One research study suggested that up to 90 percent of non-cardiac chest pain can be brought on by [rapid, shallow] breathing.”2

Prolonged stress locks in this abnormal breathing pattern, affecting the body structurally, physically, and physiologically. As the breath remains shortened, alkalosis is induced, “making delivery of oxygen to the tissues (brain, muscles) less efficient, leading to reduced motor control, lower pain threshold, impaired balance, increased feelings of agitation, fatigue, and a variety of cognitive (“brain-fog”) and emotional repercussions (anxiety, panic tendencies, etc.).”2

Over time, dysfunctional breathing becomes a cycle, making it difficult for the body to revert back to its normal function. “Chest breathing is inefficient because the greatest amount of blood flow occurs in the lower lobes of the lungs, areas that have limited air expansion in chest breathers. Rapid, shallow, chest breathing results in less oxygen transfer to the blood and subsequent poor delivery of nutrients to the tissues…Using and learning proper breathing techniques is one of the most beneficial things that can be done for both short and long term physical and emotional health.”3

The deep breathing techniques taught in yoga provide multiple benefits. A yoga student must be physically and mentally present to learn specific techniques, creating self-awareness of one’s breath in the moment it is occurring (being present). Yoga breathing also has an important physiological component. The deep exhalations of abdominal breathing stimulate nerves at the base of the lungs which activate the parasympathetic nervous system, inducing relaxation and allowing normal physiological functions to reset.

Massage can help break dysfunctional breathing patterns and assist the body in returning to health. As muscle tension is released, the body’s circulation and oxygenation increase and the nervous system is calmed, breaking the stress cycle and creating a higher state of well-being.

This is an original article from Dreamclinic, Inc. Dreamclinic is a Health and Wellness company committed to sharing information about commonly experienced health conditions and how they may be impacted through the use of bodywork and other natural approaches. Dreamclinic offers massage, acupuncture, and Reiki sessions at its Greenlake and Queen Anne clinics, as well as onsite massage at workplaces around Puget Sound. Contact us to learn more about how Dreamclinic can help you, your family or your workplace experience greater health.

Resources:
1. Andrews, Ted. The Healer’s Manual. Woodbury: Llewellyn Publications, 2006, page 5. Print.
2. http://www.massageandbodywork.com/Articles/JuneJuly2007/understandingbreathing.html
3. http://www.amsa.org/healingthehealer/breathing.cfm

Image: www.health.harvard.edu