Common signs of poor posture (left) vs. a good standing posture (right). (Credit: Adobe Stock)

Our posture ends up taking the brunt of all the sitting going on in today’s sedentary world. We watch, almost helplessly, as our bodies collapse into gargoyle-like states of physicality. There’s nothing good about it—it needs to be fixed. Posture correction exercises are a way we can be preventative, proactive, and rehabilitative, helping to keep our bodies in shape and feeling good, even in the face of modern desk work and inactivity.

What Is Posture?

Posture has been described as the position from which movement begins and ends. It’s how you hold your body while standing, sitting, or lying down. We want to train our bodies so that they  put the least amount of strain on supporting muscles and ligaments during movement; this is part of what constitutes good posture.

What Is Good Posture?

There are several components that make up good posture, some of these include:

• Neutral spine: A spine that maintains its natural curves (cervical, thoracic, lumbar)
• Stacked head positioning: Should sit directly over the shoulders without jutting forward.
• Shoulder alignment: Should sit back and relaxed; not rounded, hunched or hiked.
• Level pelvis: Pelvic positioning should be neutral; neither tilted forward nor backward.
• Weight distribution: Even distribution of weight between both feet while standing.

If you look at a person from the side in front of a plumb line (a straight line hanging from the ceiling), The front of their ankle bone, knee, hip, elbow, shoulder, and ear should all (more or less) line up with each other.

An example of a woman displaying both poor (left) and very good (right) posture. (Credit: Adobe Stock w/edits)

The Benefits of Having Good Posture

Having good posture has far-reaching benefits for the individual and their surroundings. Not only does it make you look good, it gives others the pleasantry of being around someone who appears attentive, is likely confident, and is just overall more well-presented than someone who looks tired and slouchy. Other benefits of good posture include:

Less Pain

Through the proper alignment of your spine and joints, you reduce the load on your body and mitigate the consequences that come from overloading one part of yourself over another. Neck, back, and hips are some of the most common areas of pain and discomfort.

Deeper Breathing

Standing or sitting up tall allows more room for your diaphragm to move and for your lungs to expand. This significantly lowers stress levels and encourages deep, full breaths of air (which will improve just about everything, physiologically speaking).

Improved Digestion

Poor posture increases the pressure placed on internal organs, which disrupts their function and causes all sorts of problems. One of these is indigestion. By correcting your posture, you will likely experience less heartburn and better bowel movements (who knew!).

Increased Energy

Good posture has been scientifically linked to more positive mood states, higher energy levels, and better feelings about oneself. Instead of depending on caffeine and sugary foods to keep you awake, try dedicating some time to correcting your posture, instead.

5 of the Best Posture Correction Exercises

With all this in mind, let’s learn how to do some exercises for posture correction!

What you’ll find below are 5 exercises from our programming here at ReverseSit, where we help people systematically address the problems associated with sitting and office work—all in one easy-to-use and convenient app! If you like these, sign up for our 7-day free trial by clicking here!

1. Standing Chest Stretch

Instructions

• From a standing position, reach your hands behind your back. Interlace your fingers (hold a shirt or towel if you can’t reach that far) and extend your arms until they’re straight. You should feel an intense stretch through your chest and the front of your shoulders. Hold here for 30-60+ seconds.

Postural Benefits

The pectoral (chest) and front deltoid (shoulder) muscles get very tight when we start to hunch forward and round our backs. This stretch opens them up, provides them with more blood flow, and gives our lungs more space to breathe, as a result.

2. Standing Fire Hydrant

Instructions

• From a standing position, balance yourself on one leg (use a wall/chair for support, if necessary). Bend your raised leg to 90° (picture 1). Raise it out to the side as high as you can (picture 2). When you reach your top position, squeeze as hard as you can, then lower back down to the starting position. Perform for 30 seconds on each side.

Postural Benefits

If you work an office job, or otherwise spend a lot of time sitting, your hips are dramatically underutilized. You don’t have to stabilize your pelvis if you’re sitting in a chair. This exercise challenges your pelvic stabilizer muscles for better hip stability and a nicer looking backside!

3. Standing Chin Tucks

Instructions

• From a standing position, place your hands interlaced behind your head (picture 1). From here, retract your chin, pulling your head back against your hands (think about making a double chin; picture 2). Hold for a second and feel the back of your neck working against the resistance of your hands. Return to the start position. Repeat for 30 seconds.

Postural Benefits

Forward head posture (when the head drifts forward over the collarbone) is one of the most common causes of neck pain/stiffness, headaches, and scattered focus in the workplace. This exercise trains the neck extensors, which are the muscles that pull your head back into a neutral position.

4. Lying Quad Stretch

Instructions

• Lying on your side, support your head with your bottom arm. Bend your top leg and grab its foot with your top arm. Pull your foot towards your bum, bending the knee further until you feel a good stretch in the front of your top thigh and hip. Hold this position for 30-60+ seconds.

Postural Benefits

Our quads and hip flexors get extremely stiff sitting all day. The lying quad stretch helps open up these important muscles in what’s called our anterior chain (muscles on the front of the body). It’s an important stretch for people with lower back, hip, and knee pain, especially!

5. Supermans

Instructions

• Lie face down on your stomach with your arms straight in front of you (picture 1). Lift your arms, legs, and chest off the ground by squeezing your bum, lower back, mid-upper back, and shoulders. Pause at the top position. Lower back to the start. Repeat for 30 seconds.

Postural Benefits

Supermans strengthen everything on the back of the body, which is everything that gets weak when we sit chronically for long periods of time. This exercise is especially helpful for strengthening the mid-upper back, and fixing hunchback-like postures.

Mobility & Strength Training for Office Workers | ReverseSit

ReverseSit is an all-in-one desktop platform and mobile app that helps office workers relieve pain, solve dysfunction, and get to feeling better than they ever have in their life! World class instructors and programming available 24/7 for one small monthly fee. Try us out for free by clicking here!

Written by Eric Lister – Certified Personal Trainer & Corrective Exercise Specialist