What is Considered a Good Posture

In contrast to the popular belief, a good posture does not mean keeping your spine completely straight. Many people has this misconception and it will deter them from keeping a good posture since it was just so tiring having to have their backs so straight all the time. If you feel it is exhausting whenever you try to maintain a good posture, it’s probably because you are trying to keep your back fully straight. Trying to keep your back/spine fully straight is actually as detrimental to your back as a slouched posture. By constantly tightening your back muscles, you end up straining it in the process.
A good posture means maintaining three natural curves at your back –

• An inward or forward curve at the neck (cervical curve)
• An outward or backward curve at the upper back (thoracic curve)
• An inward curve at the lower back (lumbar curve)

When you are in the right posture, it should almost feel effortless to maintain the position. A poor posture does the opposite — which can stress or pull muscles and cause pain. When you stand, your weight of your body should be evenly distributed across the balls of feet (not the heels or the front).

Take a minute out now and examine your current posture in front of a mirror (full-length if possible; otherwise get one that allows you to see at least the upper half of your body). Does it fit the description of a good posture? If not, take a look at the bad postures page on the right bar to fix your problem.

To read more, choose a topic on the categories bar on the right.

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