5 Tips for Improving Posture and Reversing Forward Head Posture – Tip #1
Tip #1: To Reverse Bad Posture, Remind Your Body of Proper Stacking
Your body has three centers of gravity: your head, your torso, and your pelvis. In perfect posture, these three centers of gravity are stacked effortlessly on top of each other. The head rests on top of the shoulders with the ears aligned with the side of the shoulders. The shoulders are aligned with the hips, not forward or back of the hips.
When we develop bad posture, one or more of these centers of gravity fall out of alignment. The more you can practice bringing your body into proper alignment during the day, the more you can begin to improve your posture.
For this exercise, we will use a simple yoga posture called Mountain Pose, or Tadasana. In Mountain Pose you stand upright against gravity with all the parts of your body in proper alignment. On the face of it, Mountain Pose looks very easy. But don’t let that fool you. When you stand properly in Mountain Pose, you work every muscle in your body. You mind is engaged too, because there is a great level of detail to pay attention to.
Everything you learn about your body and your posture while standing in Mountain Pose can be applied throughout the day, wherever you are, whatever you do. Mountain Pose can help you develop a new muscle memory, so that whenever you stand, whether it’s waiting in line at the supermarket, or waiting for a pot to boil, you can take a moment to work on your posture. There are many fine details to absorb, re-read this article as often as you need.
When you first start out, it’s useful to stand with your back against a wall or a doorjamb, with the back of your neck touching the wall or jamb. This will provide a guide to proper alignment, and will help you sense what it feels like when your body is completely upright. If you have bad posture, this will feel really strange at first, but that’s okay. It’s part of the process.
Mountain Pose for Improving Posture—Variation 1
1. Stand with your back against a door jamb. Align your body so that your sacrum touches against the door jamb. Bring your head back to touch the jamb as well. You will feel that you have to engage quite a few muscles to stand in this way. That is a good thing—you are beginning to retrain some of the muscles you need for keeping good posture throughout the day.
2. Plant your feet firmly on the floor, hip width apart. The feet provide the foundation of Mountain Pose. At the bottom of each foot, there are three points of focus: the mound of the big toe, the mound of the little toe, and the center of the heel. These should feel anchored into the floor, when you stand in mountain pose.
3. Locate these three points and what they feel like. Then see if you can distribute your weight evenly between these three points. Notice how, as you shift your alignment slightly to distribute your weigh more evenly between the feet, it creates posture changes further up your body, affecting the alignment of your legs, pelvis, and back. Stand for 2-4 minutes like this, playing with how you can realign your body to stand taller, simply by creating a more even distribution of weight in your feet.
Mountain Pose for Improving Posture—Variation 2
1. This time, stand with your back against the wall. Use the wall as a guide for alignment, pressing your shoulders and head closer towards the wall to come into an upright posture.
2. Keep the neck long and straight. Press the back of the head against the wall or as close to the wall you can get. Keep the chin slightly tucked, making sure your chin isn’t pointed upward and that your neck doesn’t bend backward. Stand for ½ – 1 min. in the pose. Breathe deeply.
3. Press your arms into the wall, and use that action to lift your chest ever so slightly. Think of pinning the shoulder blades slightly together. Don’t let the lower ribs jot out, instead, tuck your tailbone slightly. You will feel your core muscles engage. Stand in pose for 2-4 minutes (or longer as you grow stronger), noticing which muscles get activated to hold the posture and focusing on building strength. Play with coming in and out of the posture, keeping your sense of alignment without the guide of the wall.
Doing Mountain Pose regularly, focusing on keeping your foot position correct and paying attention to the legs, arms and torso will begin to gradually improve your posture and build the muscle strength you need to maintain good posture throughout the day. Lifting the chest and pinning the shoulder blades together (as we did in variation 2) will help counteract any tendency towards forward head posture and hyperkyphosis, which can develop over time if you spend a lot of time at the computer, reading, or driving in your car. Do this pose throughout the day, while you stand in line, watch TV, at the office, or whenever you have a spare moment.
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