How is your posture throughout the day? Do you catch yourself slouching frequently? If you suffer with aches and pains, especially in your neck, upper or lower back, poor posture is probably to blame.
NEWSLETTER WHAT IS ONE THING YOU CAN DO TO FEEL BETTER NOW?
FIND OUT HOW YOUR POSTURE AFFECTS EVERYTHING
NEWSLETTER
DISCOVER ONE THING YOU CAN DO TO IMPROVE YOUR LIFE!
How is your posture throughout the day? Do you catch yourself slouching frequently? If you suffer with aches and pains, especially in your neck, upper or lower back, poor posture is probably to blame. The proper curves of your spine Your spine has 3 curves, which provide support, flexibility and protect the nerves running up and down your spine. Your neck should have a gentle curve in, upper back slightly curved out and lower back slightly curved in. When you slouch, the spine in your neck and lower back actually becomes straighter,
while the upper back becomes excessively curved. This produces a forward head posture and humped upper back. In addition, weak abdominal muscles can cause
an excessive arch in the lower back. Why is posture important?
Your body is designed to be in good alignment allowing proper movement of the muscles, breathing, movement of blood throughout the body and digestion. Many chronic conditions are linked to poor posture and changes to the structure of the body. Just look in the mirror, is your posture the same as when you were younger? Poor posture leads to excessive strain on your joints, muscles, tendons and ligaments. It also weakens many of the core muscles that are needed to keep you upright and healthy. Posture changes occur over time and most people don’t pay attention to them until they are unhappy with the way their body looks or starts to hurt. Posture can be improved Our physical therapists are experts in evaluating posture and movement. By pinpointing the source of your aches and pains, we can develop a plan for you that will return you to a more youthful posture and quickly relieve your pain. Call us today to learn more how we can improve your posture and help you lead a pain free active life.
fyzicalutah.com
3 WAYS TO IMPROVE YOUR POSTURE 2. Sitting
Sit all the way back in your chair so you feel your lower back against the back rest. Avoid prolonged sitting on soft couches when watching TV as this causes excessive slouching. Try to keep your feet flat on the floor and angle your chair so that your knees are slightly lower than your hips. Try using a small rolled-up towel in your low back if you need more support in sitting. If you work at a computer, make sure that your keyboard and mouse are slightly lower than the level of your elbow. You may need to adjust your seat higher to make this happen.
3. Bending Most back injuries occur when bending and twisting at the same time. When you need to bend down to get something froma low surface, make sure you squat, keep your abdominals tight as you do so. In addition, if you are lifting something, get your body as close as possible to what you are lifting. Try having one leg forward to use your legs more to lift, rather than your back. As part of physical therapy treatment, we teach you proper posture, bending and lifting techniques to protect your body from future injuries and make sure you stay healthy for the long haul. Call us today to learn more about how we can help you live pain free!
1. Standing Stand facing a mirror. Look at your shoulders, does one seem higher than the other? Look at your neck, does it tilt to one side or stick forward? Pretend that an imaginary string is pulling you through the top of your head gently. Notice how your posture improves automatically when you try to be taller? Keep your abdominals slightly contracted to maintain this posture. When walking, make sure that your arms are moving comfortably back and forth, feeling the rotation through your torso.
Exercise Essentials fyzicalutah.com
Helps With Posture
Strengthens Back and Improves Posture
QUADRUPED ALTERNATE ARM AND LEG While in a crawling position, slowly draw your leg and opposite arm upwards. Your arm and leg should be straight and fully out-stretched. Do this 8 times then alternate.
PRONE BACK EXTENSION While lying face down, slowly raise your chest upwards and off the ground. Then lower slowly back to the ground. Repeat 10 times.
Exercisescopyrightof
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Always consultyourphysical therapistorphysicianbefore starting exercisesyouareunsureofdoing.
Enjoying Winter With Family SKIING WITH PAPA
Living in Utah I have learned that many people dislike the winter immensely. They think it’s a time of slippery roads, shoveling and enduring freezing temperatures that chill their bones. However, for me, I absolutely love the winter and look forward to playing in the snow and getting to enjoy and do my very favorite thing-- skiing. I’ve skied since I was a young boy and every fall I get excited when the air gets cold and the snow starts to fall. When I hear people say they don’t like the cold, I have a hard time understanding it because when I’m out in the cold I don’t notice it. In fact, when I’m skiing I feel warm and often have to unzip my coat to let some cool air in. I started teaching skiing when I was in college and not only was it a fun job but it was truly the only way I could afford to ski. For years, I taught at Snowbird ski resort and really fell in love with the place and have so many great memories skiing there and being with friends and family. My wife had been skiing a few times when we were dating; but after we weremarried, I made sure she became a better skier
and taught her and encouraged her to keep improving and through the years we had many fun family ski days with our children. I started teaching most of our kids when they were just 3 years old and a couple of them actually rode in a backpack on my back when they were as young as 9 months old. One of my favorites memories was listening to my young daughters sing and squeal with joy when I would go a little faster than usual with themon my back. I never knewwhat kind of comments I would get from other skier’s on days I hadmy baby on my back. The comments were either, “Wow, that is so awesome” or “You shouldn’t have your baby out here--that is so dangerous” or “What if you fall?” I would smile at them with any comments and tell them, “I don’t fall.” But, in any case, all my children are good skiers and I feel like I gave them a gift by teaching them to learn to do something hard like skiing and to love winter as much as I do. My recent joy in skiing has been teaching my grandkids how to ski. In the last couple years, I’ve had 9 of our 16 grandkids on skis, not to mention two more of the grandkids that were in baby backpacks.
The thrill of seeing these kids progress from being a little scared going down a steeper slope to being able to make turns with confidence and control is still exciting to me. Last year a couple of my grandchildren were pretty uneasy because we skied some pretty steep slopes and it seemed hard and a little scary to them especially when I constantly encourage them to ski steeper slopes. But, recently my older grandchildren have experienced a lot of breakthroughs this year as they have improved making their turns and staying in control and now they love it and want to go every Saturday. There are a lot of analogies to life in skiing. The one that I shared with my grandkids recently was to remind them that they can learn to do hard things. I’ve related their skiing tomany things in life that when you start anything new, it can be quite hard. But, as you work hard and stick with it gets easier and easier. As it gets easier, it gets more fun and confidence builds. Recently I told my grandkids, you can do anything you want in life, just think about skiing and how hard it was at first, but as you stuck with it you got better and better at it.
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