What is good posture – Will this help my low back pain

Good posture is a phrase that is used quite a lot in general conversation.  I thought it was worth exploring what it actually means.

Your posture is a term for how you are positioned while at rest.  Usually we talk about three types of postures.  Lying, standing and most commonly sitting.   Lying posture is important but heavily influenced by what you are lying upon.  As such we usually talk about mattresses and similar rather than other methods of altering how you lie. In most people they stand with pretty reasonable posture.  The best way to stand puts your body weight over your feet quite evenly so most people intuitively adopt this.  However, if you are in a job or have a hobby that requires standing for long periods it can be worth looking at your standing posture in detail. Sitting posture is influenced by the chair, however, on almost any chair you can have good posture or bad posture.

Poor posture can cause pain in the neck, low back or between the shoulder blades.  Usually taking a break settles things quickly but pain returns more rapidly and more intensely.

People often say sit up straight but this is not quite right.  Wherever pain is located I find that thinking about the low back is most effective when trying to improve it.  There should be a hollow in the low back, called a lordosis.  As the low back comes forward your head, which is full of sensors to keep it upright with the eyes looking forward is pushed backwards.  The head will then naturally correct itself so you get a small lordosis curve in your neck too. This posture puts the weight of the head over the spine and as such decreases tension in the neck muscles.  It also decreases tension in the ligaments within the neck and will ultimately be a much more comfortable sitting position.

A good position does mean you are using your muscles more and this can make them ache in the short term.  A warm wheat bag or giving them a little break, by slumping for 2 minutes, will help.  Also be aware that going from bad to good posture will make you taller and you may need to look at your work station moving your screen up or chair down. If your pain is severe, has lasted 4 days or more or improving how you sit doesn’t help get in touch by clicking here