How’s your posture?

[Sunatlast01]

I’ve never had particularly good posture but these days when I catch sight of myself in the mirror I look slightly hunched over and it’s really ageing. I’m not sure why I am noticing it more. When I stand up straight I look fine so I don’t think it’s anything medical. Having said that I go to an exercise class and a lot of the older women have a hump.

Is it just a lazy habit not to stand up straight? Any tips apart from be aware of it and make an effort!

Pilates. Core strength, alignment and proprioception make a huge difference to posture.

As it happens, I tend to do cardio exercise but I don’t do Pilates.

I did pilates and yoga for years and taught both for a while. I haven't done much for a few years but my posture is still really good. I'm doomscrolling while sitting on the floor drying my hair and have realised that I'm sitting up dead straight haha! It's just natural.

Really need to get my arse in gear and get back into a good routine.

I have started to see a PT, she is a women's health specialist too.
Posture is so related to core and pelvic floor - she is stripping down my exercises making me do them correctly and it's helping with my posture - rib positioning, neck, knees, glutes, pelvc floor ultimately is benefitting from all this.

Definitely Pilates. I’ve done it for years and have been told I have good posture.

I've got the posture of a cooked prawn! I'm definitely looking into Pilates after the recommendations on here. Does anyone know if it's suitable for people with ehlers danlos? Hypermobility.

Yoga is amazing for posture. @TheOpalReader physiotherapist from hospital has prescribed daily yoga for these issues for multiple people within my family, including myself.

I do yoga.

Lots of people have poor posture, I was thinking yesterday when I visited London.

@TheOpalReader Yes it is but you'll need to make sure you're working the correct muscles. It's very easy when you're hypermobile to think you're doing exercises correctly but actually be using the wrong muscle group. I would recommend some private sessions to make sure you've got the hang of it. I actually see a physiotherapist who's knowledgeable about EDS. The exercises she gives me are the same as you would do in pilates.

@CubanTody @Poisonwood thank you both! That's a great point about seeing a physiotherapist. I used to see one when I was younger for basic exercises but I'll get in touch with them again.

Hugely improved with yoga

@TheOpalReader try Tai Chi. Lots of mindfulness and posture. Really good for people with chronic illness as you exercise at the intensity your body creates.

Planks.

I cannot exaggerate the extent to which planks have improved my posture - and cured my LBP.

3 minutes a day - every day !! - is all it takes.

This is a good place to start:

Do it every day - it is sooooo worth it!

Definitely.

Check out Livinleggings and Yoga with Kassandra.

Yoga. Mine has improved no end since I started practicing regularly along with doing a little Pilates

I don’t do yoga or Pilates but I could easily do a YouTube video.

I’ll try planks but they are hard!

@TheOpalReader Just a quick comment on this recommendation. I have hEDS and find Tai Chi incredibly painful when you have to hold moves. I would say give it a go if you fancy it but don't feel under pressure to continue if it gets painful. It's also (obviously) lots of standing so not great if you have POTS, which is frequently co-morbid with hEDS.

Only for the first month!!

persevere… check out the Bowflex 3-minute plank. Do it Every Single Day.

tough to begin with but give it a month or so. Life-changing 😎

Thank you for the warning! I'm sure I've tried Tai Chi before and it set me and my POTS on fire for about a week afterwards 😂 such a shame as it does look very good but as you say it's no fun holding the moves.

As a total cheat I have discovered corsetry and oh my god the difference is incredible. I originally bought one as I am in the midst of ND burnout and wanted something that would give me sensory input. But my posture is better, my back pain is nonexistent and from a thoroughly selfish point of view my figure is better. I know exercise is the proper route but between sensory issues, neurodiversity and hypermobility, the chances of me doing and sticking to it are vanishing unlikely. Now I'm used to it (2 months in) I don't even feel it, but I do miss it whe it's not there.

Pilates comes at different levels

many general classes start at quite a high level

it may be a good idea to find classes that start at level 1 and move up as it were

Mine has always been good, in fact my Yoga teacher complimented me about it!
BUT, my Dad had been in the army and always told us 'Head up, shoulders back, chest out' and that's never left me!

Qigong requires holding postures for extended periods. Tai Chi is usually slow controlled continuous movements. But it is upright, which is an issue with POTS.

My teacher taught specifically for chronic illness- we could work seated, too. I’ve been very lucky. When I started I only did seated, but worked my way up as my stamina improved.

My posture is so bad. My chiropractor tells me every session I need to work harder on posture. I catch myself sitting hunched right over. I'm 32 FFS 🤣