Five Exercises That Will Help You Improve Your Body Posture

Five Exercises That Will Help You Improve Your Body Posture

by | Feb 2, 2022 | Health & Wellness

Posture simply means the position of your body when standing, sitting, or lying down. Many people tend to develop bad body postures as they grow up; and while a bad posture is barely noticeable at first, it can eventually become disturbing. A bad posture can affect your general physical appearance, reduce your confidence in public and even cause you health problems like back pain, respiratory difficulty, etc. The good news is that bad posture can be prevented before it happens, and be corrected after it happens. So if you fear that your posture is bad, I will be sharing with you, important tips and exercises for body posture that will help you regain your erect physique. Grab your sporting gear let’s begin!

Is Your Posture Bad? Quickly Do a Posture Check

If you are not sure whether you have a good posture or not, you can stand in front of a large mirror or ask a friend to help you out with a thorough look from head to toe. If after the above check, you find out that there is a straight (imaginary) line from your ear to your shoulder up to your hip, and you look balanced and upright, your posture is okay, and you only need to maintain it; but if after checking, you realize that you have rounded shoulders, slouching (drooping) head, bent knees, and a potbelly, these are red flags alerting you that your posture needs immediate attention. 

Exercises for Body Posture

There are several exercises you can try at home to improve your posture. I will be sharing some with you along with detailed steps on how to put them into practice:

1. Plank Pose

The plank pose helps you to maintain a good posture by aligning your spine properly. Also, it strengthens your muscles in the back, shoulders, buttocks, and posterior thigh.

To get in the Plank Pose:

Remember that you aim to form a straight line with your body. To do this, get down on both hands and knees while making sure that your hands align with your shoulders; and your knees, with your hips.

Now, lift your heels and straighten your legs. If you do this correctly, your body should be in a straight line.

Remain in this position for 30 seconds to 1 minute while leaving your chest open and your shoulders back.

2. Child’s Pose

The child’s pose is one of the several exercises for body posture. It is used as a resting or restorative position during yoga or even routinely as a stretching exercise. This pose helps to open the hips and lengthen the lower part of the back.

How to do the Child’s Pose:

Get a yoga mat or any soft material and spread it on the floor. Go down on both hands and knees, lean your body backward while maintaining your hands in the same position. Lean back further until your forehead comes in contact with the floor.

Ensure that your arms make a straight line and your glutes (buttocks) rest on your heels. Your shoulders should be relaxed.

Stay in this position for a while.

3. Mountain Pose

Like the Child’s Pose explained above, the Mountain Pose is also a yoga position that you can easily do to improve your posture. It focuses on the upright alignment of the body as well. To achieve this, several aspects of good body posture are involved.

How to Do the Mountain Pose:

Stand erect with both feet and hip wide apart while ensuring an even distribution of your weight on both feet. Move back and forth gently to feel how the variations in weight distribution affect your posture.

Slightly bend your knees, squeeze your thighs and tilt your tailbone down. Push your chest forward by dropping your shoulders down and back.

Now, keep your shoulders relaxed while allowing your arms to fall to the sides of your body and your palms facing forward. Breath in and out a few times and maintain the position for a few seconds.

4. Arch Up

This exercise consists of three important movements that require you to tuck your chin and rotate your arms externally with your thumbs facing upward.

The three movements are shoulder flexion, shoulder extension, and horizontal abduction. You can do them as follows:

  • Shoulder Flexion: Push both arms and shoulder blades upwards and raise your hands as high as you can without bending them.
  • Horizontal Abduction: Raise both arms as high as you can to the side and bring your shoulder blades together.
  • Shoulder Extension: Push your arms upwards and lift them as high as you can

5. Forward Fold

The forward fold is a stretch exercise that helps to release tension in your spine, posterior thigh muscles, and buttocks. Also, it stretches your hips and legs. The interesting thing about this exercise is that you will feel the backside of your body lengthening and opening up.

How to Do the Forward Fold Stretch:

Stand erect with your big toes touching and your heels kept slightly apart. Now, bring your hands to your hips and fold forward towards them.

Place your hands on a block or release them towards the floor as far as you can.

Slightly bend your knees, soften your hip joints, and allow your spine to lengthen. Then tuck your chin into your chest and allow your head to fall to the floor.

Maintain this pose for a minute.

READ ALSO: 10 Signs You Are Not Getting Enough Sleep

Other Ways to Improve Your Body Posture

It is noteworthy that apart from the exercises for body posture which you can do periodically, there are several day-to-day activities that when done correctly will speed up your journey towards achieving your desired posture.

Standing Correctly

  1. Stand erect and allow your arms to relax by your sides
  2. Keep your shoulder back and wide apart
  3. Push your chest a little bit forward and pull your belly button towards your spine
  4. Your chin should be parallel to the floor
  5. Keep your feet flat on the floor

The correct way of sitting at a desk

  1. Keep your back straight
  2. Your feet should be flat on the floor
  3. Do not cross your legs
  4. Keep your ears aligned with your collar bone
  5. Just like in standing, your chin should also be parallel to the floor

Using your phone or laptop

  1. Apply similar posture rules as in standing and sitting depending on your current position
  2. Your laptop should be placed on a desk such that it will be at the level of your eyes without necessitating you to bend your neck down or lookup.
  3. While using your phone, do not hold it below or above your line of sight while sitting or standing erect

While lying down

  1. Keep your spine aligned
  2. Avoid sleeping on your stomach, as this can cause your neck to twist
  3. Avoid twisting of your waist

Summary

A good posture says a lot about you; from the level of confidence to health status. It is among the first things that your prospective employers, spouse use to make a first impression about you. Maintaining a good posture helps you not just to appear confident but also protects you from several unwanted health conditions.

Have you tried any of the exercises above? Please share your experience with us in the comments section below.

FAQs

Q: Which exercise is best for good posture?

A: There is no single best exercise for body posture, you will get better results by combining several exercises.

Q: How long will it take me to get a good posture?

A: This depends on your current posture, body weight, and how dedicated you are to the course. The more effort you put in, the quicker you see results.

Q: Do I need a fitness coach?

A: Getting a fitness coach will make your journey easier, but if you cannot afford one, this article is a good place to start.

Q: Am I expected to continue the exercise for life?

A: This might not be necessary; once you can achieve a good posture, your next step will be to maintain it, and this can simply be done by avoiding bad standing, sitting, and lying postures.

Q: Is weight loss necessary?

A: Yes, weight loss is necessary if you are obese or overweight. Excess weight will weaken your abdominal muscles and add additional stress to your joints thus affecting your posture.

6 Techniques You Can Learn to Stay Fit at Work

6 Techniques You Can Learn to Stay Fit at Work

by | Jun 4, 2021 | Personal Growth

The adage which states “health is wealth” is actually true to a great extent. It is very unfortunate that the very thing that can make us profitable, and successful employees for our company can also harm our health—maybe even permanently. This is obvious in the sense that when you work almost every minute of your life,  caring less about your health, it will one day lead to body breakdown. And therefore making it impossible to be productive since the health is in a bad state.

6 Things You Can do Regularly to Ensure You Stay Healthy at Work 

1. Get Enough Bed Rest

 It is medically advised to have eight hours of sleep at a stretch during the night. Doing so will help the body to regain the energy it has lost during the day. 

If a person gets more sleep, then they are more focused and better at performing tasks.

Carter

Therefore, they get more done and can feel better about their work. While without adequate sleep, employees have more difficulty concentrating, learning, and communicating. Memory lapses increase. Problem-solving abilities decline. Which will surely affect the work. 

2. Engage in Daily Exercises

Regular physical activity can improve your muscle strength and boost your endurance. Exercise delivers oxygen and nutrients to your tissues and helps your cardiovascular system work more efficiently. And when your heart and lung health improve, you have more energy to work effectively at your place of work. 

 You should be clocking up at least 150 minutes of moderate-intensity physical activity a week.

It may sound like a lot, but even 10 minutes at a time makes a big difference. By doing activities that make you feel warmer, breathe harder and make your heart beat faster, you can reap the benefits. 

You don’t necessarily need to register in the gym before you can engage in physical activity. There are numerous exercises you can actually go for irrespective of whether you are at home or at work which will go a long way in keeping you fit at work. Among which is movement as suggested by Matt Liggins, a health and wellbeing manager at health at work. 

Also, Try walking meetings or going to speak to someone instead of emailing. Use the toilets in a different part of the building and use the stairs instead of the lift, even for one floor of your journey.

Implement simple changes such as standing up when you’re on the phone or walking around checking emails on your phone instead of your computer.

3. Take Frequent Breaks

Taking a break improves focus and concentration and provides the opportunity for an employee’s mental reset. After a break, work can resume with more energy and motivation. Working without taking one or more breaks only leads to mental and physical fatigue. Hence taking a break helps in a breakthrough. 

But the funny thing is, we always want to finish our work so we can get out of the office on time. However, this does not mean that you should sit without going for a break. Taking a break is actually productive rather than a time-wasting tool you think of it.

Furthermore, Breaks at work help keep you focused on your goals and tasks at hand, which keeps productivity up. They can also help to increase motivation and creativity. 

4. Eat the Right Food will Help You Stay Fit at Work

Eating a healthy, well-balanced diet is essential for good health and can help maintain healthy body weight and improve positive well-being. It can also help reduce the risk of certain diseases and illnesses such as coronary heart disease, obesity, strokes, type 2 diabetes, and certain cancers.

You can therefore improve your productivity at work through healthy eating. 

5. Maintain A Good Posture

Poor posture can negatively affect energy levels, resulting in fatigue. Practising good body alignment may help you remain focused and energized at work. Practice these posture exercises that will help you have a good posture.

Whether you’re delivering packages or caring for patients, correct posture can allow you to power through the day more easily.

6. Stay Motivated

If a worker is motivated, they are more likely to do a good job and work hard. Motivation is very important for attracting employees, retaining employees, and general levels of productivity in a business.

Motivated employees are more likely to be willing to work, rather than staying off.

Conclusion

Moreso, we can actually motivate ourselves by means of our self-confidence and challenge ourselves to stretch beyond our perceived limits. Is staying fit at work important to you? How do you ensure you stay on top of your fitness? Tell us in the comments below!