Written by: Chris Roosa
Good Posture
Good posture has many important benefits, including making you appear younger, taller, and even more confident – but there is more to “perfect” posture than how others perceive you. Good posture has lifelong health benefits that can dramatically improve your quality of life, and even help you live longer!
This article will give you insights on the difference between static and dynamic posture, and steps you can take today to optimize your personal posture for better health, improved performance, and a fully optimized physique.
Posture and Health
Posture is defined by how your joints align relative to the force of gravity when you are standing or sitting (static posture), and when your body is in motion (dynamic posture), like when you are walking, running, or bending over to pick up something.
Suboptimal postural alignment requires more energy to sustain, and puts more stress on your joints, increasing your risk of injury and causing long-term structural damage. Poor posture can interfere with the smooth gliding of your nerves among soft tissues and rigid structures, causing pain and inhibiting quality movement. Poor posture contributes to multiple health conditions, such as:
- Back pain
- Neck pain
- Shoulder pain and dysfunction
- Impaired breathing
- Headaches
- Pelvic pain and dysfunction
- Joint pain in the hips, knees, ankles and feet
- Balance issues
What Causes Poor Posture?
Your skeletal structures require your muscles, fascia and connective tissues to hold them in place. Postural alignment is achieved by coordinated muscle tension throughout your body. As your muscles contract, they pull against rigid structures which assists in securing your form.
Developmental milestones are innately programmed into the coordination of human movement, and they can be reactivated by physical therapy techniques such as dynamic neuromuscular stabilization and postural restoration exercises.
Humans begin to develop posture as soon as we are born. During the first year of life, the stages of infant development coincide with milestones in movement, such as lifting the head, rolling over, pushing up, creeping, and crawling; and eventually standing and walking.
When early development progresses without impediments, good posture is naturally established. However, many things can undermine good posture over time and as we age, resulting in suboptimal motor strategies that cause pain and dysfunction.
Causes of poor posture can include:
- Sedentary lifestyle
- Being overweight or obese
- Repetitive movement patterns that overuse muscles on one side of the body
- Excessive sitting (computer work, long commutes, etc)
- Activities that cause a prolonged head-forward posture, like reading and using electronic devices
- Old injuries that were never properly rehabilitated!
Common Postural Adaptation Patterns
There are common postural adaptation patterns that FX Physical Therapy’s Doctors of Physical Therapy (DPTs) are trained to evaluate and effectively treat. One common pattern that physical therapists look for is a Left Anterior Interior Chain (AIC) dominant pattern. The Left Anterior Interior Chain (AIC) is a term established by the Postural Restoration Institute that has gained a lot of popularity over the last few years. It effectively explains how humans are naturally asymmetrical and how that can lead to movement dysfunction and pain. The AIC pattern and its resultant compensations can lead to a variety of joint and tendon issues throughout the body.
Human anatomy and evolution has resulted in us favoring our right sides and our asymmetrical nature puts us in this position (yes, even if you are left-handed). This is completely normal and not a problem at all, but what matters is that this asymmetry can be exacerbated by poor breathing, postural integrity, and lifestyle habits like sitting too long.
Why is a Left AIC adaptation pattern so common?
- Our organs are not symmetrical:
- Our right lung is bigger than our left with three lobes on right and only two on left.
- Our liver is a large organ which sits predominantly on the right side supporting the right diaphragm improving its mechanical advantage.
- The heart sits on top of left diaphragm
- Our diaphragm, a main muscle of inhalation, is larger on the right with stronger and longer tendons inserting into the lumbar spine.
There is some research on this as well:
- This study found that there is a normal rightward orientation of the human spine
- This study found that there is a normal right side-bend in the human spine
- Respiration mechanics
Breathing dysfunction is often a result of this pattern and is a main driver of maintaining it. This is important because the body is primarily concerned with survival. In order to survive, our body naturally orients to bringing air in the easiest and most energy-efficient way possible.
Essentially, if we are leaning on our right side, our right ribs are going to be oriented down and won’t open as easily as our left. Therefore, our body will orient in a position that’s most efficient to bring in air, with the left chest wall open.
The left side is opened up via pelvic orientation to the right and our trunks (relatively) to the left so we can really breathe into our left chest. Upon inhalation, air will take the path of least resistance to bring in air and oxygen into our lungs, which makes sense given it is the most important thing a human needs.
The result is a right side that is biased towards:
- Internal Rotation
- Adduction
- Extension
And a left side that is biased towards:
- External Rotation
- Abduction
- Flexion
- Brain Asymmetry
In addition to organ asymmetry and respiration, our brains are not symmetrical. Research suggests that the left hemisphere, which controls the right side of the body, is dominant in motor planning. This helps explain why most people are right-hand dominant.
The net effect is a bias towards standing on the right side and reaching more often with our right hands, which usually presents as a tendency to shift our weight onto our right leg when standing and our right ischial tuberosity (“sit-bone”) when sitting.
There are several things you can do to improve your posture, as well as long-term strategies for maintaining a healthy posture throughout your lifetime.
The good news is that the physical therapists at FX Physical Therapy can evaluate dysfunctional posture and movement patterns using objective tests and measures.
Once your posture and movement have been thoroughly assessed, your FX Physical Therapist will utilize advanced hands-on techniques to restore your posture and optimize your movement.
CLICK HERE for one of our Doctors of Physical Therapy to contact you to discuss options to get you feeling and moving better in 2024
References:
Chibulka, MT et al. Changes in innominate tilt after manipulation of the sacroiliac joint in patients with low back pain. Physical Therapy, 1988; 68: 1359-1363.
Wolpert, L. Development of the asymmetric human. European Review, 2005; 13(2): 97-103.
Zaidi, ZF. Body asymmetries: Incidence, etiology and clinical implications. Australian
Journal of Basic and Applied Sciences, 2011; 5(9): 2157-2191.
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