Take A Look At Your Posture
Are you ready to change your posture for the better? It’s helpful to start by taking a good look at what your posture naturally is. Using a floor-length mirror can help get the job done.
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Pay attention to how you naturally hold your back, your neck, your feet — everything about your stance. If you feel you can’t easily evaluate your own posture, ask a loved one, friend, or even a doctor for some assistance and pointers.
How To Easily Improve Your Posture
Once you understand how you naturally move about, it’s time to start fixing it. You don’t want any rounded shoulders, slouched backs, or heads leaning forward.
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Instead, stand tall. Straighten your spine completely. Move your shoulders to where they would naturally rest, ensuring they are not up by your ears or tense. You should also slightly tighten your stomach muscles. With a good posture, you’ll be using these muscles.
Make Sure You Stretch Daily
Stretching daily can greatly improve your overall health alongside correcting your posture. As bad posture can increase the chance of health issues such as heartburn and constipation, stretching daily truly will change your body.
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There are many different types of stretches that can aid your spine and neck. The goal is to move your body, increase your flexibility, and remove any muscle tension you might have.
Strengthen Your Core Muscles
Keeping strong core muscles is a necessary step in fully correcting your posture. When you have strong core muscles, it’s easier for your body to maintain a proper posture throughout your day, no matter what you’re doing.
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To strengthen your core, work out daily or a few times a week. Keep it consistent. Focus on exercises that help develop your abdominal and lower back muscles, such as Russian twists and planks.
Invest In Proper Shoes
Shoes that don’t give you enough support may be why your posture has been suffering. To fully correct your posture, therefore, you’re going to need proper shoes.
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Look for shoes that offer you accurate arch support and comfortable cushioning. These shoes should form to the natural shape and curves of your feet. If you have painful posture problems, don’t buy any flat shoes or ones that have high heels. Get shoes with moderate heels instead.
Set Up A Comfortable Workspace
If you work at a desk all day, chances are your posture has suffered over time. It’s easy to slouch your back and shoulders while working at a desk. So, to keep your posture accurate even while you’re at work, try creating a comfortable workspace.
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Investing in a comfortable desk chair that sits at an accurate height is very helpful. When you sit at your desk, your knees should be at a 90-degree angle, while your feet should be resting flat on the floor. Keep your chair close enough to your computer, and your monitor at eye level.
Take Walking Breaks While At Work
Try not to stay at your desk for eight hours straight. Instead, break up your work with regular breaks throughout the day. During this time, you can stretch slightly to loosen up any tense muscles that may have formed while working.
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It can also be helpful to take a quick walk around during this break. Even if this walk is only to the break room and back, it can give you the time to readjust your posture and loosen up.
Don’t Get Tech Neck
Have you heard of tech neck? Those who have tech neck have pain in their neck and shoulders thanks to poor posture when using their phones or computers. Obviously, this isn’t ideal.
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To avoid getting tech neck, it’s important to understand the proper way to use technology. Hold all your phones and tablets at or near eye level. This can keep you from straining your neck.
Stay Hydrated
If you’re ever looking to improve any aspect of your health, you’ll probably be told to stay hydrated throughout the day. Drinking the accurate amount of water each day can greatly help your entire body — and your posture.
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On average, men should drink about 15.5 cups of water a day. Women, meanwhile, should drink about 11.5 cups a day. Drink this amount of water consistently, and you’ll begin to naturally see your posture improve.
Be Mindful Of Your Actions
Having a deeper awareness of your body and how you sit or stand can greatly help you improve your posture — and your overall health. So, try your best to be more mindful of your actions and your body.
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Partaking in yoga or tai chi are great ways to develop this type of awareness. Both practices are also wonderful when it comes to steering clear of slouching, too.
Create A Habit
Most people don’t think about their posture throughout the day — until they suddenly remember and quickly straighten their neck and back. To truly improve your posture, it’s important to create a habit of reminding yourself throughout the day to correct how you sit or stand.
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Try your best to be mindful throughout your day about your posture. It might help to leave little notes around your workplace or home reminding you to straighten your body. Investing in comfortable desk chairs or pillows can also help you remember.