Maybe you’ve noticed your posture getting worse over the years. Well, it’s never too late to adjust your posture and learn to stand up straighter naturally! Today, Rise of Happiness shares some time-tested tips for improving the alignment of your spine.  Furthermore, you can easily start applying these tips in your daily life right away, from trying simple posture changes to re-organizing your home to reduce stress.

How Better Posture Benefits You

You may not realise the extent to which poor posture is affecting your life. Evolve Chiropractor states that poor posture can lead to negative consequences for your health, including slow digestion, nerve pain, blood vessel constriction, and even reduced lung capacity.

1. Quick Posture Fixes

In order to start fixing your posture, you’ll need to begin making small tweaks to your stance and getting used to how it feels. First, just practise standing up tall. Hold your spine in a neutral position, roll your shoulders back, and keep your chin angled parallel to the ground in order to properly distribute your weight. This will naturally minimise stress on your joints and muscles.

2. Design Spaces to Reduce Stress

Stress and chronic pain go hand-in-hand. Twin Cities Pain Clinic states that anxiety makes you more susceptible to inflammation, and the pain you feel can exacerbate your anxiety! It’s a vicious cycle, and if you’re coping with chronic pain, it can be tough to improve your posture.

To reduce your stress levels, take a look around your home and consider how you could re-organize your space. For example, you could start with your home office. If you have lots of clutter lying around, toss out items you don’t need and place necessary supplies in the right storage spaces. Use folders or a filing cabinet to store your paperwork, and make sure you have bright lighting that illuminates your whole office.

Also, you can reduce stress even further by digitising your important documents, making them easier to find. If you need to edit your PDFs, there are tools you can use for free, which will greatly simplify your recordkeeping and take away a lot of stress of staying organised.

3. Get Active and Move Your Body

Exercise and physical activity can have a significant impact on our posture. When we engage in regular exercise, our muscles become stronger and more flexible, which can help to improve our overall alignment. This, in turn, can lead to better posture while standing, sitting, and even walking. For example, incorporating a daily walk into your routine can help to strengthen your core, back, and leg muscles, which are all vital for maintaining good posture. So, whether you enjoy going for a jog, lifting weights, or practising yoga, making physical activity a priority can help to improve your posture and overall health.

4. Seek Professional Medical and Chiropractic Support

If you experience chronic pain as a result of your posture, then you may need to seek professional help from a doctor, specialist, or chiropractor. These professionals will know how to best address your posture issues and pain management, whether it’s dietary, exercise-based, or a simple adjustment.

5. Invest in Ergonomic Furniture

Sometimes, the chair, desk, or keyboard that you use on a daily basis can hurt your posture. Purchasing ergonomic furniture is often an easy solution. Today, there are countless ergonomic chairs on the market, so you’ll need to do some research and test out a few models to figure out which one is best for you.

The Human Solution recommends choosing a chair with adjustable seat height, a seat that spans about one inch wider than your hips, armrests, and plenty of lumbar support. You’ll want to pick out a desk that accommodates your chair with adequate space, and you may even want to look at ergonomic keyboard options for additional upper-body support throughout the workday.

6. Change Your Sleeping Habits

You spend about a third of your time sleeping, so naturally, your mattress, pillow, and sleeping position can all have a significant impact on your posture! But what’s the best sleeping position if improving your posture is your goal? Ideally, you’ll want to sleep on your back. This can take some getting used to, so try it out for a few nights in a row to see if this position feels right for you. Additionally, you’ll need to pick a mattress that provides complete support for your body – if your mattress is old and sinking, it can harm your spine health.

Prioritise Your Posture and Feel Better

Yes, bad posture habits can be tough to fix. But when you’re standing up tall, you’ll feel more confident and self-assured! By learning how to hold your body for good posture, taking steps to create a stress-free environment, and even changing your sleep routine and environment, you can stand with poise.

Rise of Happiness is here to promote wellbeing. Let us know if you have any questions!