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Newsletter: June 2005
In this issue:
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POSTURE - LET'S SET THINGS STRAIGHT...JUST HOW IMPORTANT IS POSTURE?
Stand up Straight!
Apparently mother knows best. She is the one who always told me to "stand up straight" and "keep your shoulders back!". Mothers everywhere seem to carry the odious task of ensuring good posture for their children. And who better? Moms are like mirrors, in that they reflect back to you any physical deviance your body may be going through as you grow up. Most important, they watch you when you think that no one is looking, and therefore not thinking about your posture.
Bad posture doesn’t happen overnight. It is a gradual process; a response to how you hold your body in various positions, such as sitting and standing. Your body responds to your bad postural habits, and soon begins to adapt to these habitual poses until they begin to feel "normal ". Most people with bad posture aren’t even aware of it, so they are often surprised and embarrassed when it is pointed out to them. Many with poor posture will suffer from various aches and pains that are a direct result of the muscle imbalances their poor posture has caused. With proper training, these "postural pains" can be eliminated, and you will stand straighter and taller.
What to do?
If you suspect or have been told that you have poor posture, you should seek a health professional’s assistance. Your posture will be assessed, muscle imbalances identified and the ability of your muscles to engage properly will be checked, among other tests. From this point, a plan of action will be created for you.
Five Typical Common Solutions
- Develop good postural daily habits.
Think of your posture right now, while you are reading this article. Are you maintaining a nice neutral spine position while sitting tall or are you slumped in a chair with your head jutting forward? The way your body is held or positioned during both rest and activity has a large effect on your overall posture and appearance. Check yourself the next time you pass a mirror. How rounded are your shoulders? Is one shoulder lower than the other? Is your upper spine rounded?
- Strengthen Core Muscles.
Proper posture requires engaging or tightening your "core" muscles. Your core muscles include your abdominal (tummy) muscles, obliques (waist) and lower back muscles. When your core muscles are strong and in balance, they provide support to your spine, which, incidentally, relies upon the muscles of your core for almost all of its support. Without core muscles, your body would not be able to maintain an erect posture.
- Stretch "anterior" muscles.
Most people with the classic "rounded" shoulders, such as those spending a lot of time working on computers, have taught their body to feel comfortable in this position. When this position becomes habitual, the anterior muscles (chest, front deltoid and internal rotators) shorten and get very tight. People with rounded shoulders need to stretch their chest and shoulder muscles to help regain normal posture. If you were to physically manipulate this person’s limbs into proper position, it would feel very strange to him. With patience and a daily stretching routine, you can begin to reverse this pattern of tightness.
- Strengthen "posterior" muscles.
As the anterior or front muscles shorten and tighten, so do the opposing muscles on the other side of the body (upper back) stretch and weaken. The muscles in the upper back (including the rhomboids, middle trapezius and external rotators) fall victim to prolonged periods of improper postural positioning, and essentially are in a constant "stretched" position. These muscles become inefficient and fail to help you stand straight.
- Encourage Proper Firing Patterns.
This one’s a little trickier. The muscle imbalances we have been talking about can lead to some muscles not firing effectively (that is, not performing the job for which they were intended) and to other muscles compensating by working too much. This in turn can lead to reduced mobility and the beginning of a cycle of tissue damage and discomfort. Think back to a time when you may have stepped on a sharp rock while enjoying a barefoot stroll on the beach. Perhaps you were forced for the next few days to change the way your foot strikes the ground in order to avoid irritating the wound. Likely you would have felt some discomfort somewhere in your lower leg as a result of using your muscles in a new way for which they were not intended. This is much like what happens when your muscles adapt to an ever-worsening posture; new muscles are forced to do work that they never should have been required to do.
So think back to your mother’s words and take the steps required to improve your posture. After all, mother knows best.
Doug Pickard is a Certified Personal Trainer and running coach. You can reach him at Fitness Connection Health Club in Parksville (951-0061) if you would like to set up an appointment, or if you would like to ask him any fitness related questions.
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FREE
NOTE FROM US -- FREE!!! As partners with the Fitness Connection Health Club, we have "Two-Week Free Trial" certificates for the club available at our office. Come in for a posture check and pick up your freebie.
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Dr. Larry's Posture Tips
- Start each day with some slow and gentle stretches.
- Perform daily routines, such as shaving or putting on makeup, with posture in mind. Don't hunch over the sink straining to see your reflection; instead, stand up straight. A mirror that attaches to an extension arm and brings your reflection towards you, instead of the other way around, can also be helpful.
- Halt painful phone calls by either holding the receiver, using a headset or opting for a speakerphone. Cradling the receiver between your head and shoulder can cause spinal joints in the neck and upper back to 'hang up' and eventually disconnect you from life by causing pain.
- Roll those heavy bags; don't carry them. Wearing a shoulder strap over one shoulder destroys posture, making loss of balance more likely -- which may cause shoulder and back pain. If wheels aren't an option, try a bag with a handle or a spine-friendly backpack (as long as it's not overloaded).
- Shun vertebral subluxations when sitting by not crossing the same knee over the other. This habit may eventually cause misalignment of the spine.
- Steer clear of sloppy driving posture. When sitting in the car, adjust the seat forward so your knees are higher than your hips.
"Straight Talk: Let's Get Ready For Golf" by Chad Bleasdale
(Originally printed in "Natural News", Spring 2005, Volume 1 Number 2. The newsletter of our Wellness Partners, Jessica and Lori, at "Infinity Holistic Healing Clinic". They can be reached at 951-2288 and/or at www.infinityhealing.ca. We will be featuring "Infinity Holistic Healing Clinic" in our newsletter in the near future. Watch for it. These ladies have a lot to offer to our cooperative goal of community health and wellness.)
 With the island golf season heading into full swing, it's time to get those muscles up to par. Take it easy at first and be sure not to over do it as you want to be sure you take advantage of a nice long golf season we have here.
The following are a couple of exercises that can be done in the back yard or just before your round of golf and will help get you back in the game in no time.
For both of these exercises you will need a golf club and will require you to stand with your feet shoulder width apart and your knees slightly bent. With the golf club horizontal, bring it up and over the head (just below the ears). Start by doing half squats. Slowly squat the body halfway down then stand back up straight. Repeat 20 times. Next with the body upright and golf club still behind the head, you are going to do upper body twists. First twisting to the left and then to the right, while keeping the hips straight forward. Repeat 20 times. Stretching is key to achieving and maintaining the mobility needed to play like a pro!
(Chad Bleasdale is a BCPRA Certified Weight Trainer and Personal Trainer who works at Fitness Connection Health Club in Parksville. He can be reached at 248-3144 or at
www.fitnessconnectionhc.com.)
Come in to our office and pick up your free pocket/pouch-sized pamphlet on golf stretches containing full colour photos of the stretches.
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TESTIMONIAL OF THE MONTH
"Before starting chiropractic care I was tired, irritable and had pain in my neck, shoulders and hips. I had great difficulty breathing due to asthma.
Chiropractic care has improved my asthma (breathing) immensely. I feel more energetic and stronger. I am sleeping so much better and looking forward to life!
I am respectfully treated by Dr. Larry and Nancy runs the office in an efficient, friendly and caring way."
Mary Surtel
WORDS OF WISDOM (Or just plain funny stuff)
You can't beat Will Rogers for "words to live by"?
- Never slap a man who's chewing tobacco.
- Never kick a cow chip on a hot day.
- There are two theories to arguing with a woman...neither works.
- Good judgement comes from experience, and a lot of that comes from bad judgement.
- And last but not least -- appropriate to the articles on golf...
- Long ago when men cursed and beat the ground with sticks, it was called witchcraft. Today it's called golf.
We invite you to sign up for Dr. Larry's newsletter, which is sent out periodically with interesting new health information. When you click below an email will be generated, and then you simply press "send" on your email software.
Contact the office:
Dr. Larry Smith D.C., B.P.E.
Chiropractor
P.O. Box 307
255 Island Highway
Parksville, British Columbia
Canada V9P 2G5
Phone: (250) 248-6333
Fax: (250) 248-6390
e-mail: info@drlarrysmith.com
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