6 unexpected ways poor posture affects your life [Spinal Health Week 2017]
We’re all guilty of ignoring the simple things – the everyday, commonsense adjustments that make life better.
Like posture!
Getting your posture straight is a small but vital step in boosting wellbeing. But because it’s so simple, we tend to overlook it. Surely good posture isn’t that important? How much difference can the position of your body really make?
The answer? A lot!
We’ve chatted about posture before and how to get it right with the help of an unconventional acronym – but today we’re letting you in on exactly how poor posture affects your life with 6 unexpected side-effects of slouching. Prepare to be amazed!
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Less R.E.S.P.E.C.T
One thing’s for sure; Aretha Franklin had killer posture. Belting out R.E.S.P.E.C.T with a straight back and a powerful lungs, this sassy singer reminds us that the posture you adopt has the ability to change people’s perceptions of you.
Body language is an outward expression of confidence, authority and self-assuredness. Standing tall with your head held high (well, not too high), chest up and shoulders back, lets the world know you deserve to be heard.
New research shows that our posture and body language has the ability to influence our moods and emotions, too. Adopt small, diminishing, and hunched poses? It’s more likely that you’ll act that way.
Don’t let poor posture undermine confidence. Be like Aretha – stand tall and demand a little more respect!
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Low mood
Similarly, science suggests that slouching may also increase feelings of sadness and depression.
In a recent study, students were told to either slouch as they walked down a hall, or to skip. The slouchers reported more feelings of depression and less energy than the skippers.
Straighten up for an instant mood boost.
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Pain, soreness and fatigue
Poor posture makes everything in your body work harder.
Muscles overcompensate to stabilise out-of-position bones and joints. Compression of the spine, nerves and blood vessels interfere with proper functioning of the nervous system. Slumping forward squashes your ribcage, leaving less room for lungs to expand and absorb adequate amounts of oxygen.
All important bodily workings are taxed by poor posture, often leading to pain, soreness and fatigue. The solution? You know what to do!
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Bad news for number twos
Here’s where it gets serious: poor posture can compromise your ability to poop perfectly – a scary thought!
Sitting hunched forward or folded over squashes your intestines, backing things up and predisposing to constipation. Not only that, but increased pressure on the digestive organs has been connected to hernias, reflux and IBS-like symptoms.
Give those hard-working intestines room to relax. Sit up straight and feel the benefits for digestion.
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Does this posture make me look fat?
Unfortunately, poor posture is the enemy of a trim waistline.
Luckily, it’s easy fixed!
Sitting in a slouched position pushes your internal organs downwards, with nowhere else to go but out to the sides or drooping over your pants (like a paunch).
Correct this optical illusion and shed (imaginary!) kilos by adopting a proper posture, lengthening your torso and preventing belly ‘spillover’.
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Increased STRESS.
The position of your body has the power to affect your mood, your mind and your stress levels – and science agrees.
Studies suggest that people who adopt more powerful postures enjoy dramatic decreases in cortisol (the stress hormone).
This may be due to the fact that poor posture promotes shallow chest-breathing, activating the fight or flight response and taxing the cardiovascular system. Slouching signals the body to release stress hormones, while confident poses send the message: ‘you’ve got this’.