Is Poor Posture Giving you a Pain in the Neck?

Posture can be described as the relative alignment of your body parts to one another and means different things when you are sitting, standing and on the move.

But why is posture important?

Having correct posture places your muscles and joints in the correct position to work at their optimum efficiency. This allows you to function at your best with a lower risk of injury or pain.

Having a poor posture is a risk factor for many conditions including shoulder impingement, headaches, rib sprains, neck, shoulder, upper and lower back pain. And the bad news is it only gets worse as you age. In addition to the physical impacts studies have shown that people with good posture are perceived to be more outgoing, confident and attractive by other people.

Here are a few quick steps you can take to help correct your posture:

1. Think tall - just by thinking tall, lifting your chest and looking straight ahead you improve your posture.

2. Sit straight - your teacher or mother probably told you not to slouch. And she was right.

3. Have a balanced weights program focusing on strengthening the back and front of your body.

4. Keep your chin tucked in so that your ears are in line with your collarbone.

5. If sitting for long periods - reach up to the ceiling with both hands and stretch back over your chair - do this 5 times every hour - it is also useful to do this stretch BEFORE you pick up the phone ( if it rings a lot in your office ) - this will keep re-setting your posture and reduce neck pain at work.