March 17, 2025 • 21 mins
Have you ever considered that the way you stand and sit could be influencing everything from your aches and pains to your energy levels to your risk of chronic disease? Forget what you thought you knew about "standing up straight"—posture is far more dynamic and influential than most of us realize.
I'm diving deep into our body's relationship with gravity and movement to reveal how posture acts as a continuous, adaptive process rather than a static position.
Whether you're dealing with chronic pain, seeking better athletic performance, or simply want more energy throughout your day, understanding posture as a dynamic system offers powerful insights for improving your health. Listen for practical strategies to enhance your body awareness and create balanced, efficient movement patterns that support your overall wellbeing. Your body has a story to tell—are you ready to listen?
Heart of Motion Podcast host Susannah Steers is a Pilates & Integrated Movement Specialist and owner of Moving Spirit Pilates in North Vancouver, BC. She is passionate about movement, about connections and about life.
Through movement teaching, speaking, and facilitating workshops, she supports people in creating movement practices that promote fitness from the inside out. She loves building community, and participating in multi-disciplinary collaborations.
Along with her friend and colleague Gillian McCormick, Susannah also co-hosts The Small Conversations for a Better World podcast – an interview based podcast dedicated to promoting the kind of conversations about health that can spark positive change in individuals, families, communities and across the globe.
Social Media Links:
Moving Spirit Pilates Instagram
Moving Spirit Pilates Facebook
Susannah Steers Instagram
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Transcript
Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
Susannah Steers (00:00):
Welcome to the Heart of Motion podcast.
I'm Susanna Steers and I'll beyour host as we explore the
heart, soul and science ofmovement as a pathway to more
active, vibrant and connectedliving.
Nothing happens until somethingmoves, so let's get started.
Today, I want to explore withyou one of the most fundamental
(00:22):
yet often misunderstood aspectsof our physical lives, and
that's posture.
As a Pilates and integratedmovement specialist, I've seen
firsthand how posture impactsnot just our movement and
physical health, but also ourenergy levels and our overall
well-being.
Today, we're going to dive intothat dynamic world of posture
(00:42):
and we're going to uncover someperhaps surprising insights
along the way.
For years, we've been told thatgood posture is about standing
up straight with your shouldersback and your chest out.
For many people, posture iskind of a static concept,
something to hold on to tocreate a pleasing aesthetic, but
the truth is posture isanything but static.
(01:04):
Our bodies are designed to moveand our posture changes with
every step, every breath andevery movement.
We're constantly balancing thestructure of the human body
against the forces of gravity,load and velocity.
Posture is actually a verydynamic process, constantly
shifting and moving to createthe best possible conditions in
(01:26):
your body for optimum supportand motion.
The latest research emphasizesthat it's not about achieving a
perfect aesthetic, but aboutmaintaining a balanced and
adaptable body.
A 2025 article in theInternational Journal of
Environmental Research andPublic Health defines it this
(01:46):
way Posture can be described asany position adopted to maintain
balance with maximal stability,using minimal energy and
avoiding overloading anatomicalstructures.
Posture results from a complexrelationship between the
neuromotor and biomechanicalsystems in the body and is under
(02:10):
the continuous control of thecentral nervous system, aiming
to provide postural alignmentand balance, enabling the
maintenance of a stable andupright position against gravity
.
Now I've experienced thisevolving nature of posture
myself.
As a young dancer and anathlete, the demands on my body
were very different than theywere as I shifted from
performance to a career as aPilates teacher.
Pregnancy and motherhoodbrought new challenges to my
(02:34):
posture, and now, as Iexperience menopause, I'm
noticing changes again.
I've learned over time thatit's a journey and not a
destination.
Early in my career, I figuredthat there were hard and fast
rules around what correctposture was and how to achieve
it.
Now I recognize that every bodyhas a story and that each
(03:01):
individual will have a differentpath to what optimal posture
looks like for them.
Let's talk about the spine for aminute, since that's often
where we look first when we'retalking about posture.
There are three natural curvesto the spine the cervical curve
in your neck, the thoracic curveof the rib cage, the lumbar
curve of the lower back and thesacral curve, which is the
lowest part of the spine andkind of sits within the two
(03:22):
halves of the pelvis.
These curves work together todistribute weight evenly and
facilitate movement.
Now the curve of your neck is alittle bit concave, while the
curve of your thoracic spine isconvex.
Your lower back has a concavecurvature and the sacrum has a
convex one.
These curves have evolved overthousands of years of bipedal
(03:45):
human motion to give a certainbuoyancy to the body.
They balance each other out andact effectively like a kind of
spring.
The collective curves absorband transmit vertical forces,
rotational forces and otherdirectional loads at play on the
body as it stands and movesthrough space.
Maintaining these curves to thebest of our ability is
(04:06):
important for good posture andefficient movement.
It keeps the spinal spring kindof spry.
When these curves are out ofbalance it can lead to
discomfort, challenging movementpatterns and an increased risk
of injury.
Anybody out there dealing withscoliosis, a condition that
involves unusual lateral curvesof the spine, has likely
(04:28):
experienced some of thesechallenges.
A mild scoliosis may not benoticeable at all, either to the
eye or to a person's experienceof living in their body.
Bigger curves people can have ahard time developing uniform
strength and mobility in theirbodies, making it harder to
stabilize and support theirstructure and motion, which can
(04:49):
lead to things like chronic painand injury.
A significant scoliosis canhave a profound effect on the
function of vital organs.
They get kind of squishedaround changing the pressure
balance in the body and otherworking relationships for the
function of the organs.
Sometimes injuries accumulatedover time can affect our posture
.
A few years ago I discoveredthat I had five old healed
(05:12):
fractures in my spine that Ididn't know about, and while the
fractures themselves,surprisingly, didn't seem to
cause me any pain or discomfortat the time, the resulting
challenges to my movement and mybreath, especially after
childbirth and into menopause,were significant.
It was only after years oftrying to figure out some
personal movement issues that Ifinally got the images revealing
(05:33):
the structural problemunderlying my situation.
I had an interesting curve inmy spine, but even without a
pathology, it's often our habitsthat contribute to poor posture
.
Prolonged sitting in front of ascreen is likely the most
famous one Flexed hips, aslouched spine, exaggerated
spinal curves with the head kindof punched forward and the neck
(05:55):
overextended.
Maybe your low back is eitherhyperextended or overflexed.
If you're chronically sittingthis way, you might be surprised
at how challenging it is tomove well, even if you're up and
doing physical activity everyday after work.
Just look at one element ofthis.
In an ideal posture, theconsiderable weight of your head
(06:15):
is balanced easily over thespine on top of the springy
curves of the spinal column, alittle like a balloon on a stick
.
When the spinal curves arealtered somehow and the typical
sitting at the computer postureis a prime example then the head
will often fall forward of themidline of the spine, where it
becomes much harder to support.
(06:36):
Try this Imagine holding a10-pound bowling ball in your
one hand, close to your body.
It's heavy enough, but notunmanageable right Now.
Imagine extending your arm sothat you're holding that same
10-pound bowling ball way outaway from you.
What do you think?
Would that be a little harderto support?
Of course it would.
(06:57):
The further the head moves awayfrom your midline, the heavier
it feels and the harder the restof your body has to work to
support it.
When it's sitting too farforward of the midline, that 10
to 12 pound bowling ball of ahead could effectively feel like
it weighs 20 or 30 poundsinstead, which would mean you're
expending a heck of a lot ofenergy simply trying to hold up
(07:20):
the weight of your head, andthat becomes a functional
problem, not just an aestheticone.
How many people do you knowworking at a desk complain of
neck and shoulder pain?
This is the kind of thing weget used to.
Over time, our bodies adapt toinefficient postures and find
ways to help us feel normalinside of them.
(07:42):
We don't always notice howdysfunctional they are because
our bodies get so darn good atadapting to the things that we
do often.
But let's say you then takeyour slouchy computer posture
that your body's found a way tonormalize onto your mountain
bike or into lifting weights orsome other activity.
Your body is primed to supportitself in a way that it's gotten
(08:03):
used to and it may get in theway of feeling great on your
bike or in the gym or messingaround with the kids in the yard
, and, more often than not, ifyou've got a coach.
The coach may not point outthat postural piece as an
important consideration whenyou're working on your technique
and it all starts to add upover time.
In Pilates we emphasize supportfor these spinal curves and
(08:25):
other things through centeringcore engagement, balanced muscle
development and as full a rangeof motion as possible.
By strengthening your core andimproving your stability and
your mobility, you can maintainbetter posture and reduce the
strain on all your joints.
I think that's what drew me toPilates in the first place.
It made me a better athlete andit helped me manage all kinds
(08:49):
of structural challenges overthe course of my lifetime.
Now, strangely enough, I'm notsomeone who loves fitness as an
activity in and of itself.
I love movement and Pilateshelps me move better, which
helps me do the things I love todo as fully as I want to do
them, and that brings me tofitness.
When it's done well, pilatescan be a great way to clean up
(09:12):
and support your best posture.
Just saying Posture affects morethan just our physical
activities, though.
It has an impact on our overallhealth, energy levels and
emotional well-being too.
Good posture can improverespiratory function, increase
energy efficiency and enhancecognitive clarity.
Conversely, poor posture canlead to fatigue, decreased lung
(09:37):
capacity and even mood changes.
I touched earlier on howposture can affect your
breathing.
If you're someone who's alwaysslouching, then the respiratory
diaphragm your main breathingmuscle, might not work as well
as it could.
The diaphragm needs to have areally good vertical excursion
inside your ribcage, a littlelike the action of a piston, to
(09:58):
properly expand and deflate yourlungs.
If your upper body is slouchedforward over your lower body all
the time, then your posture maybe preventing that vertical
excursion and impairing yourbreathing.
And in the body, breathing isjob one.
It is the most important thing.
So if the main breathingmechanism isn't able to do its
(10:19):
thing well, then all kinds ofother muscles will jump in to
help to make sure you get thebreath you need to survive.
Neck muscles, shoulder muscles,back muscles all kinds of
different muscles and othersjust want to help.
We'll do whatever they have todo to help you breathe.
These helpers are valiant intheir efforts, but they just
(10:39):
can't do the job nearly as wellas the primary musculature
responsible.
Not only does respirationbecome less efficient, but all
those helping muscles end updoing their own jobs less
effectively too.
I think it's fascinating torecognize that cardiovascular
function and the verycoordination of our movement can
(10:59):
be so intricately linked inways that we really don't think
about most of the time.
If we know that posture canaffect breathing in such a big
way, we have to look at thepossibility that other functions
might be affected too.
Bad posture can influence ourcirculation, restricting blood
flow and oxygen delivery to thebrain, causing brain fog and
(11:20):
headaches and cognitive issues.
Now the circulatory system hasthe heart to keep pumping blood
through the body.
The lymphatic system, on theother hand, requires movement to
function well.
The lymphatic system is part ofyour immune system and it helps
keep body fluid levels inbalance and helps defend against
infection.
And if parts of the body aren'tmoving well, due to either
(11:43):
underactive or overactivemusculature, the fluids in our
body may stagnate, and that cancause everything from swelling
to fatigue, to stiff joints,skin changes and aches and pains
.
Recent studies have shown thatmaintaining proper posture can
actually reduce the risk ofchronic diseases by improving
circulation and reducinginflammation.
(12:04):
That kind of blows my mind thathow you stand and sit can
change your risk of chronicdisease.
Okay, let's get back to movementfor a minute.
I talk about patterns a lot onthis podcast, and movement
patterns are usually at the topof the list.
Even though most people thinkof posture as a static thing,
(12:25):
postural patterns are movementpatterns.
I keep coming back to the ideathat movement is everywhere.
The more we can tune in to thedifferent movement potentials in
our bodies, beyond the stuff wetypically attribute to fitness
and physical activity, andattend to the quality of that
movement, the healthier we canbe.
Now, dive that deep may not beeverybody's jam, and where
(12:49):
that's true, I think you canlean into the idea that the more
you move your body in a wholebunch of different ways,
balancing out the stresses onyour system, and if you pay
attention to your posturalhabits, those things alone can
improve your health and overallwell-being.
So you know, done At MovingSpirit Pilates, we have a saying
how you move matters, and if Icould distill that down, what we
(13:13):
mean by that is that goodposture and movement patterns
typically lead to easier, moreefficient movement.
Poor posture increases your riskof injury because your body has
to compensate for imbalances byaltering movement patterns,
which can lead to strainedmuscles and joints and overuse
injuries.
All of that can result ininflammation as the body tries
(13:36):
to heal these overworked tissues, potentially aggravating
conditions like osteoarthritisand accelerating joint
deterioration.
Your posture and how you moveare not just controlled by your
musculoskeletal system.
There are other forces at play.
Our definition from earlieridentified that posture is under
the continuous control of thecentral nervous system.
(13:58):
That becomes important, I think, when we start to think about
how we manage emotions andstress and their effects on our
bodies and minds.
Do you remember, a number ofyears ago, the work of Amy Cuddy
?
She was a social psychologistwho became quite popular in
certain circles.
She created a number ofdifferent kinds of power poses
that, she said, highlighted theimpact of body language on
(14:20):
things like confidence andsuccess, and one of these power
poses was called the WonderWoman pose.
Here's how it worked.
Feel free to stand up and givethis a try for yourself and see
if you experience a similarsense of power.
All right, you're going tostand tall with your feet about
shoulder width apart, reallygrounded into your feet.
Place your hands on your hips,pull your shoulders back, lift
(14:42):
your chest, create an open andconfident posture, tilt your
chin slightly upward.
You hold this pose for a fewminutes and truly feel the
impact on your confidence.
What do you notice?
Studies suggest that holdingpower poses like the Wonder
Woman can influence your hormonelevels, potentially leading to
(15:03):
increased testosterone anddecreased cortisol, which is the
stress hormone, through thenervous system.
Our posture can positively ornegatively affect our emotional
state.
I think Amy Cuddy's work seemslike a way to kind of hack that
system by borrowing a strong,confident posture and feeling
all those good things as youstand in the pose for a while,
(15:24):
and hopefully those feelingsstick with you for longer than a
few minutes.
We can often tell how someoneis feeling, though, can't we, by
the way they stand and movearound.
Typically, we associate moreupright postures as being more
positive, upbeat, strong andconfident, and when we see a
slouched posture, we often thinkof that as being a little more
(15:45):
unhappy, uncomfortable or lessconfident.
It's a two-way street Postureaffects emotion and emotion
affects posture.
Years ago I discovered andbecame fascinated with the work
of Stanley Kellerman, who was anAmerican body psychotherapist
and a writer and the founder offormative psychology.
(16:05):
His work rested on the ideathat the physical human shape is
correlated with emotional andpsychological reality.
Quite literally, that feelingfollows form.
Among my favorite of his bookswas an edition called Emotional
Anatomy, which presented indepth how sadness, anger, fear
(16:25):
and other emotions arephysiologically organized.
It was a fascinating read fullof all kinds of great pictures,
and it's been interesting towatch over the course of my
career.
You can kind of see some ofthose postures and people's
emotional realities.
There's something to it.
Coming back to the nervoussystem, though, we can talk
about the effects of posture onthe vagus nerve, which you may
(16:48):
have heard about.
It's having a bit of a momentthese days.
The vagus nerve is a criticalpart of your parasympathetic
nervous system, or the rest anddigest part which calms you and
promotes relaxation.
This nerve is involved inregulating heart rate, digestion
and mood, and research hasshown that slumped postures can
decrease vagal tone, which islinked to increased stress and
(17:11):
negative emotions.
We could drill way down intothe physiology of all this, but
really you've likely felt ityourself already.
Think about how much better youfeel after you've been sitting
at your desk or doing sedentarythings and you get up and go for
a walk outside.
You breathe better, youroutlook improves In just a few
(17:31):
short minutes.
You feel better.
After years of movement work,I've seen how easy it is to
focus on superficial corrections, like using posture correctors
of various kinds or quick bootcamp style fixes without
addressing the underlying issues.
A temporary fix is just that.
It might feel good for a shorttime, but a quick, superficial
(17:54):
solution like posture correctorscan sometimes create a
dependency and weaken posturalmuscles over time.
It's crucial to make sure youget at the root causes of poor
posture, such as structuralmisalignments or emotional
issues.
We can use those tools ascrutches to help us when we need
it, but we want to get back toas much full support of our own
(18:17):
systems as we can.
So how do we do that?
What do we do?
We can keep it simple or we candive deep.
Pick your pleasure.
Here are a few fairly practicaltips.
First, one's pretty obviousStay active.
Regular movement helps maintainflexibility and strength,
essential for good posture.
Do what you can to vary yourroutines and move in as many
(18:39):
different planes of motion asyou can, in as big a range of
motion as you can.
Mindful movement can be a greatway to improve posture.
Of course, I like Pilatesbecause it emphasizes body
awareness, it improves corefunction and really promotes
balanced musculature.
At my studio, moving Spirit, weoffer personalized programs
(19:00):
tailored to your specific needs,whether you're an athlete or
recovering from illness, orsimply looking to improve your
movement and overall health.
Vary your positions.
Avoid prolonged sitting orstanding by changing positions
frequently throughout the day,at least every 30 minutes or so.
Shift positions, get up, walkaround, change it up, breathe
(19:23):
deeply Really good breathing canhelp relax muscles and improve
your posture overall.
Check back to a previousepisode.
We did all about breathing.
We'll touch on some of thestuff that we've already talked
about here today.
The other one is monitor andlearn to regulate your emotions.
Spending a little time figuringout what sets you off and how
(19:47):
it sets you off, and what youcan do to kind of balance things
out a little bit, can be reallyhelpful.
So you see, posture is not justabout standing up straight.
It's about creating a dynamicbalance that supports efficient
movement and overall well-being.
As I reflect on my own journeywith posture, I realize how it
(20:08):
has evolved over time.
My posture has shifted andchanged significantly over the
years.
What I've learned is that it'snot just about achieving a
perfect posture, but aboutunderstanding and addressing the
underlying factors thatinfluence it, whether it's
physical changes or emotionalstress.
Recognizing these factors iskey to making lasting
(20:31):
improvements.
Get to know yourself, yourposture and your movement and
you'll begin to feel better inyour mind, in your body and in
your spirit.
When you improve your posture,you reduce your injury risk,
improve your health and youpromote active aging too.
Remember you matter and how youmove matters.
(20:52):
Every movement is anopportunity to improve your
posture and your health andconnect to yourself on a much
deeper level.
Thanks so much for joining metoday.
We'll see you next time.
I hope you enjoyed today'sepisode.
Subscribe and, if you love whatyou heard, leave a five-star
review and tell people what youenjoyed most.
(21:14):
Join me here again in a coupleof weeks.
For now, let's get moving.
Welcome to the Heart of Motion podcast.
I'm Susanna Steers and I'll beyour host as we explore the
heart, soul and science ofmovement as a pathway to more
active, vibrant and connectedliving.
Nothing happens until somethingmoves, so let's get started.
Today, I want to explore withyou one of the most fundamental
(00:22):
yet often misunderstood aspectsof our physical lives, and
that's posture.
As a Pilates and integratedmovement specialist, I've seen
firsthand how posture impactsnot just our movement and
physical health, but also ourenergy levels and our overall
well-being.
Today, we're going to dive intothat dynamic world of posture
(00:42):
and we're going to uncover someperhaps surprising insights
along the way.
For years, we've been told thatgood posture is about standing
up straight with your shouldersback and your chest out.
For many people, posture iskind of a static concept,
something to hold on to tocreate a pleasing aesthetic, but
the truth is posture isanything but static.
(01:04):
Our bodies are designed to moveand our posture changes with
every step, every breath andevery movement.
We're constantly balancing thestructure of the human body
against the forces of gravity,load and velocity.
Posture is actually a verydynamic process, constantly
shifting and moving to createthe best possible conditions in
(01:26):
your body for optimum supportand motion.
The latest research emphasizesthat it's not about achieving a
perfect aesthetic, but aboutmaintaining a balanced and
adaptable body.
A 2025 article in theInternational Journal of
Environmental Research andPublic Health defines it this
(01:46):
way Posture can be described asany position adopted to maintain
balance with maximal stability,using minimal energy and
avoiding overloading anatomicalstructures.
Posture results from a complexrelationship between the
neuromotor and biomechanicalsystems in the body and is under
(02:10):
the continuous control of thecentral nervous system, aiming
to provide postural alignmentand balance, enabling the
maintenance of a stable andupright position against gravity
.
Now I've experienced thisevolving nature of posture
myself.
As a young dancer and anathlete, the demands on my body
were very different than theywere as I shifted from
performance to a career as aPilates teacher.
Pregnancy and motherhoodbrought new challenges to my
(02:34):
posture, and now, as Iexperience menopause, I'm
noticing changes again.
I've learned over time thatit's a journey and not a
destination.
Early in my career, I figuredthat there were hard and fast
rules around what correctposture was and how to achieve
it.
Now I recognize that every bodyhas a story and that each
(03:01):
individual will have a differentpath to what optimal posture
looks like for them.
Let's talk about the spine for aminute, since that's often
where we look first when we'retalking about posture.
There are three natural curvesto the spine the cervical curve
in your neck, the thoracic curveof the rib cage, the lumbar
curve of the lower back and thesacral curve, which is the
lowest part of the spine andkind of sits within the two
(03:22):
halves of the pelvis.
These curves work together todistribute weight evenly and
facilitate movement.
Now the curve of your neck is alittle bit concave, while the
curve of your thoracic spine isconvex.
Your lower back has a concavecurvature and the sacrum has a
convex one.
These curves have evolved overthousands of years of bipedal
(03:45):
human motion to give a certainbuoyancy to the body.
They balance each other out andact effectively like a kind of
spring.
The collective curves absorband transmit vertical forces,
rotational forces and otherdirectional loads at play on the
body as it stands and movesthrough space.
Maintaining these curves to thebest of our ability is
(04:06):
important for good posture andefficient movement.
It keeps the spinal spring kindof spry.
When these curves are out ofbalance it can lead to
discomfort, challenging movementpatterns and an increased risk
of injury.
Anybody out there dealing withscoliosis, a condition that
involves unusual lateral curvesof the spine, has likely
(04:28):
experienced some of thesechallenges.
A mild scoliosis may not benoticeable at all, either to the
eye or to a person's experienceof living in their body.
Bigger curves people can have ahard time developing uniform
strength and mobility in theirbodies, making it harder to
stabilize and support theirstructure and motion, which can
(04:49):
lead to things like chronic painand injury.
A significant scoliosis canhave a profound effect on the
function of vital organs.
They get kind of squishedaround changing the pressure
balance in the body and otherworking relationships for the
function of the organs.
Sometimes injuries accumulatedover time can affect our posture
.
A few years ago I discoveredthat I had five old healed
(05:12):
fractures in my spine that Ididn't know about, and while the
fractures themselves,surprisingly, didn't seem to
cause me any pain or discomfortat the time, the resulting
challenges to my movement and mybreath, especially after
childbirth and into menopause,were significant.
It was only after years oftrying to figure out some
personal movement issues that Ifinally got the images revealing
(05:33):
the structural problemunderlying my situation.
I had an interesting curve inmy spine, but even without a
pathology, it's often our habitsthat contribute to poor posture
.
Prolonged sitting in front of ascreen is likely the most
famous one Flexed hips, aslouched spine, exaggerated
spinal curves with the head kindof punched forward and the neck
(05:55):
overextended.
Maybe your low back is eitherhyperextended or overflexed.
If you're chronically sittingthis way, you might be surprised
at how challenging it is tomove well, even if you're up and
doing physical activity everyday after work.
Just look at one element ofthis.
In an ideal posture, theconsiderable weight of your head
(06:15):
is balanced easily over thespine on top of the springy
curves of the spinal column, alittle like a balloon on a stick
.
When the spinal curves arealtered somehow and the typical
sitting at the computer postureis a prime example then the head
will often fall forward of themidline of the spine, where it
becomes much harder to support.
(06:36):
Try this Imagine holding a10-pound bowling ball in your
one hand, close to your body.
It's heavy enough, but notunmanageable right Now.
Imagine extending your arm sothat you're holding that same
10-pound bowling ball way outaway from you.
What do you think?
Would that be a little harderto support?
Of course it would.
(06:57):
The further the head moves awayfrom your midline, the heavier
it feels and the harder the restof your body has to work to
support it.
When it's sitting too farforward of the midline, that 10
to 12 pound bowling ball of ahead could effectively feel like
it weighs 20 or 30 poundsinstead, which would mean you're
expending a heck of a lot ofenergy simply trying to hold up
(07:20):
the weight of your head, andthat becomes a functional
problem, not just an aestheticone.
How many people do you knowworking at a desk complain of
neck and shoulder pain?
This is the kind of thing weget used to.
Over time, our bodies adapt toinefficient postures and find
ways to help us feel normalinside of them.
(07:42):
We don't always notice howdysfunctional they are because
our bodies get so darn good atadapting to the things that we
do often.
But let's say you then takeyour slouchy computer posture
that your body's found a way tonormalize onto your mountain
bike or into lifting weights orsome other activity.
Your body is primed to supportitself in a way that it's gotten
(08:03):
used to and it may get in theway of feeling great on your
bike or in the gym or messingaround with the kids in the yard
, and, more often than not, ifyou've got a coach.
The coach may not point outthat postural piece as an
important consideration whenyou're working on your technique
and it all starts to add upover time.
In Pilates we emphasize supportfor these spinal curves and
(08:25):
other things through centeringcore engagement, balanced muscle
development and as full a rangeof motion as possible.
By strengthening your core andimproving your stability and
your mobility, you can maintainbetter posture and reduce the
strain on all your joints.
I think that's what drew me toPilates in the first place.
It made me a better athlete andit helped me manage all kinds
(08:49):
of structural challenges overthe course of my lifetime.
Now, strangely enough, I'm notsomeone who loves fitness as an
activity in and of itself.
I love movement and Pilateshelps me move better, which
helps me do the things I love todo as fully as I want to do
them, and that brings me tofitness.
When it's done well, pilatescan be a great way to clean up
(09:12):
and support your best posture.
Just saying Posture affects morethan just our physical
activities, though.
It has an impact on our overallhealth, energy levels and
emotional well-being too.
Good posture can improverespiratory function, increase
energy efficiency and enhancecognitive clarity.
Conversely, poor posture canlead to fatigue, decreased lung
(09:37):
capacity and even mood changes.
I touched earlier on howposture can affect your
breathing.
If you're someone who's alwaysslouching, then the respiratory
diaphragm your main breathingmuscle, might not work as well
as it could.
The diaphragm needs to have areally good vertical excursion
inside your ribcage, a littlelike the action of a piston, to
(09:58):
properly expand and deflate yourlungs.
If your upper body is slouchedforward over your lower body all
the time, then your posture maybe preventing that vertical
excursion and impairing yourbreathing.
And in the body, breathing isjob one.
It is the most important thing.
So if the main breathingmechanism isn't able to do its
(10:19):
thing well, then all kinds ofother muscles will jump in to
help to make sure you get thebreath you need to survive.
Neck muscles, shoulder muscles,back muscles all kinds of
different muscles and othersjust want to help.
We'll do whatever they have todo to help you breathe.
These helpers are valiant intheir efforts, but they just
(10:39):
can't do the job nearly as wellas the primary musculature
responsible.
Not only does respirationbecome less efficient, but all
those helping muscles end updoing their own jobs less
effectively too.
I think it's fascinating torecognize that cardiovascular
function and the verycoordination of our movement can
(10:59):
be so intricately linked inways that we really don't think
about most of the time.
If we know that posture canaffect breathing in such a big
way, we have to look at thepossibility that other functions
might be affected too.
Bad posture can influence ourcirculation, restricting blood
flow and oxygen delivery to thebrain, causing brain fog and
(11:20):
headaches and cognitive issues.
Now the circulatory system hasthe heart to keep pumping blood
through the body.
The lymphatic system, on theother hand, requires movement to
function well.
The lymphatic system is part ofyour immune system and it helps
keep body fluid levels inbalance and helps defend against
infection.
And if parts of the body aren'tmoving well, due to either
(11:43):
underactive or overactivemusculature, the fluids in our
body may stagnate, and that cancause everything from swelling
to fatigue, to stiff joints,skin changes and aches and pains
.
Recent studies have shown thatmaintaining proper posture can
actually reduce the risk ofchronic diseases by improving
circulation and reducinginflammation.
(12:04):
That kind of blows my mind thathow you stand and sit can
change your risk of chronicdisease.
Okay, let's get back to movementfor a minute.
I talk about patterns a lot onthis podcast, and movement
patterns are usually at the topof the list.
Even though most people thinkof posture as a static thing,
(12:25):
postural patterns are movementpatterns.
I keep coming back to the ideathat movement is everywhere.
The more we can tune in to thedifferent movement potentials in
our bodies, beyond the stuff wetypically attribute to fitness
and physical activity, andattend to the quality of that
movement, the healthier we canbe.
Now, dive that deep may not beeverybody's jam, and where
(12:49):
that's true, I think you canlean into the idea that the more
you move your body in a wholebunch of different ways,
balancing out the stresses onyour system, and if you pay
attention to your posturalhabits, those things alone can
improve your health and overallwell-being.
So you know, done At MovingSpirit Pilates, we have a saying
how you move matters, and if Icould distill that down, what we
(13:13):
mean by that is that goodposture and movement patterns
typically lead to easier, moreefficient movement.
Poor posture increases your riskof injury because your body has
to compensate for imbalances byaltering movement patterns,
which can lead to strainedmuscles and joints and overuse
injuries.
All of that can result ininflammation as the body tries
(13:36):
to heal these overworked tissues, potentially aggravating
conditions like osteoarthritisand accelerating joint
deterioration.
Your posture and how you moveare not just controlled by your
musculoskeletal system.
There are other forces at play.
Our definition from earlieridentified that posture is under
the continuous control of thecentral nervous system.
(13:58):
That becomes important, I think, when we start to think about
how we manage emotions andstress and their effects on our
bodies and minds.
Do you remember, a number ofyears ago, the work of Amy Cuddy
?
She was a social psychologistwho became quite popular in
certain circles.
She created a number ofdifferent kinds of power poses
that, she said, highlighted theimpact of body language on
(14:20):
things like confidence andsuccess, and one of these power
poses was called the WonderWoman pose.
Here's how it worked.
Feel free to stand up and givethis a try for yourself and see
if you experience a similarsense of power.
All right, you're going tostand tall with your feet about
shoulder width apart, reallygrounded into your feet.
Place your hands on your hips,pull your shoulders back, lift
(14:42):
your chest, create an open andconfident posture, tilt your
chin slightly upward.
You hold this pose for a fewminutes and truly feel the
impact on your confidence.
What do you notice?
Studies suggest that holdingpower poses like the Wonder
Woman can influence your hormonelevels, potentially leading to
(15:03):
increased testosterone anddecreased cortisol, which is the
stress hormone, through thenervous system.
Our posture can positively ornegatively affect our emotional
state.
I think Amy Cuddy's work seemslike a way to kind of hack that
system by borrowing a strong,confident posture and feeling
all those good things as youstand in the pose for a while,
(15:24):
and hopefully those feelingsstick with you for longer than a
few minutes.
We can often tell how someoneis feeling, though, can't we, by
the way they stand and movearound.
Typically, we associate moreupright postures as being more
positive, upbeat, strong andconfident, and when we see a
slouched posture, we often thinkof that as being a little more
(15:45):
unhappy, uncomfortable or lessconfident.
It's a two-way street Postureaffects emotion and emotion
affects posture.
Years ago I discovered andbecame fascinated with the work
of Stanley Kellerman, who was anAmerican body psychotherapist
and a writer and the founder offormative psychology.
(16:05):
His work rested on the ideathat the physical human shape is
correlated with emotional andpsychological reality.
Quite literally, that feelingfollows form.
Among my favorite of his bookswas an edition called Emotional
Anatomy, which presented indepth how sadness, anger, fear
(16:25):
and other emotions arephysiologically organized.
It was a fascinating read fullof all kinds of great pictures,
and it's been interesting towatch over the course of my
career.
You can kind of see some ofthose postures and people's
emotional realities.
There's something to it.
Coming back to the nervoussystem, though, we can talk
about the effects of posture onthe vagus nerve, which you may
(16:48):
have heard about.
It's having a bit of a momentthese days.
The vagus nerve is a criticalpart of your parasympathetic
nervous system, or the rest anddigest part which calms you and
promotes relaxation.
This nerve is involved inregulating heart rate, digestion
and mood, and research hasshown that slumped postures can
decrease vagal tone, which islinked to increased stress and
(17:11):
negative emotions.
We could drill way down intothe physiology of all this, but
really you've likely felt ityourself already.
Think about how much better youfeel after you've been sitting
at your desk or doing sedentarythings and you get up and go for
a walk outside.
You breathe better, youroutlook improves In just a few
(17:31):
short minutes.
You feel better.
After years of movement work,I've seen how easy it is to
focus on superficial corrections, like using posture correctors
of various kinds or quick bootcamp style fixes without
addressing the underlying issues.
A temporary fix is just that.
It might feel good for a shorttime, but a quick, superficial
(17:54):
solution like posture correctorscan sometimes create a
dependency and weaken posturalmuscles over time.
It's crucial to make sure youget at the root causes of poor
posture, such as structuralmisalignments or emotional
issues.
We can use those tools ascrutches to help us when we need
it, but we want to get back toas much full support of our own
(18:17):
systems as we can.
So how do we do that?
What do we do?
We can keep it simple or we candive deep.
Pick your pleasure.
Here are a few fairly practicaltips.
First, one's pretty obviousStay active.
Regular movement helps maintainflexibility and strength,
essential for good posture.
Do what you can to vary yourroutines and move in as many
(18:39):
different planes of motion asyou can, in as big a range of
motion as you can.
Mindful movement can be a greatway to improve posture.
Of course, I like Pilatesbecause it emphasizes body
awareness, it improves corefunction and really promotes
balanced musculature.
At my studio, moving Spirit, weoffer personalized programs
(19:00):
tailored to your specific needs,whether you're an athlete or
recovering from illness, orsimply looking to improve your
movement and overall health.
Vary your positions.
Avoid prolonged sitting orstanding by changing positions
frequently throughout the day,at least every 30 minutes or so.
Shift positions, get up, walkaround, change it up, breathe
(19:23):
deeply Really good breathing canhelp relax muscles and improve
your posture overall.
Check back to a previousepisode.
We did all about breathing.
We'll touch on some of thestuff that we've already talked
about here today.
The other one is monitor andlearn to regulate your emotions.
Spending a little time figuringout what sets you off and how
(19:47):
it sets you off, and what youcan do to kind of balance things
out a little bit, can be reallyhelpful.
So you see, posture is not justabout standing up straight.
It's about creating a dynamicbalance that supports efficient
movement and overall well-being.
As I reflect on my own journeywith posture, I realize how it
(20:08):
has evolved over time.
My posture has shifted andchanged significantly over the
years.
What I've learned is that it'snot just about achieving a
perfect posture, but aboutunderstanding and addressing the
underlying factors thatinfluence it, whether it's
physical changes or emotionalstress.
Recognizing these factors iskey to making lasting
(20:31):
improvements.
Get to know yourself, yourposture and your movement and
you'll begin to feel better inyour mind, in your body and in
your spirit.
When you improve your posture,you reduce your injury risk,
improve your health and youpromote active aging too.
Remember you matter and how youmove matters.
(20:52):
Every movement is anopportunity to improve your
posture and your health andconnect to yourself on a much
deeper level.
Thanks so much for joining metoday.
We'll see you next time.
I hope you enjoyed today'sepisode.
Subscribe and, if you love whatyou heard, leave a five-star
review and tell people what youenjoyed most.
(21:14):
Join me here again in a coupleof weeks.
For now, let's get moving.
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