One of the more alarming issues
confronting the majority from a structural perspective is poor posture, which
stems from muscular imbalances developed over a sustained period of
time from a combination of improper training (exercise selection and execution),
poor/inefficient lifestyle habits (sitting at a desk all day for work), lack of
understanding of anatomy, or simply not caring enough to train muscles that can’t
be seen because they lie beneath more superficial, aesthetically appealing
muscles.
To give an idea of how
predictable it is for poor posture to be developed, try walking into nearly any
gym on a Monday evening and take note to how great the percentage of members
are that are performing exercises that target the chest. The same could be said
for Tuesday in which you’ll be hard pressed to get in a solid back workout due
to lack of availability of equipment, Wednesday is generally shoulders or legs,
and Thursday is generally whatever wasn’t trained on Wednesday, leaving arms
for Friday. Take note to your surroundings next time around and see what
percentage of people are performing exercises specific to those bodyparts on those
respective days, I’m sure you’ll be surprised at how accurate that claim is.
One thing you won’t see much of
is anyone performing exercises specific to the rotator cuff, primarily the the
external rotators of the shoulder, which is likely due to them not being
visible, which makes them mistakenly perceived as unimportant.
What is beyond the knowledge of most
people is that, aside from being aesthetically pleasing to the eye when
developed, the pec and lat muscles are also internal rotators of the arm, and when
these muscles become overpowering they begin to pull the arm down, as well as into
internal rotation. This increases the risk for shoulder impingement in a
resting state, let alone during dynamic movement in which the arm is moving
through various ranges of motion. When the internal rotators (pec and lat) over
power the often neglected external rotators, the result is faulty alignment, which
manifests its way into our line of vision through what appears to be a plateau,
as the body will not allow itself to keep getting stronger and worsen the
imbalance. In fact, it will do everything in its power to prevent the imbalance
from getting worse, even if deliberate action is being taken to continue doing
the same thing which created the problem in the first place.
It’s not uncommon to see the
same people year after year who perform the same exercises, in the same order,
on the same days, and appear to have no idea why they aren’t progressing.
Combine the fact that their body has completely habituated to their mundane
routine with the fact that they’re routine lacks balance, and you have a recipe
for one imbalanced physique at best, and the breeding ground for serious injury
at worst. The concept of habituation is another story in and of itself, but as
it relates to imbalances in both posture and routine, the only people who seem
to ever focus on postural movements to improve or maintain optimal alignment (exercises
that target areas like the external rotators of the arm) are the ones who have
been instructed to do so by a chiropractor because of a musculoskeletal injury
they sustained, most likely stemming from imbalances they unintentionally
created themselves.
Ones posture is the most direct
visual indicator as to what muscles need to be lengthened, and what muscles
need to be shortened. Correcting imbalances and recreating balanced development is
of paramount importance for anyone if continued progression is highly valued.
Without balance, progress will be limited, and the likeliness of getting
injured will be elevated. This begs the obvious question of, ‘just what is proper
posture?’
Proper posture from the ground
up is arched feet, flat on the floor, shoulder width apart, with 60% of your
weight on the front of your foot and 40% on the back. The knees should be very
slightly bent, never completely extended, hyperextension being indicative of
tight/short hamstrings. The hips should be aligned with the shoulders when
looking from the side of the body. The hips should also have a very slight
anterior (front) rotation. The lower abs should be slightly flexed to maintain
proper positioning of the hips. The sternum must be held high for optimal lung
function and to prevent rounding of the upper back. The shoulders should remain
down and back and from the side you should not be able to see any of your upper
back because the shoulders should be in the way. The arms should rest at your
sides and palms facing the body from a side angle. The head should be near the
vertical line of the hips and shoulders.
Now that you may have clear idea
of what proper posture is, the following will outline some
very common postural deficiencies.
Lordosis – is when the hip flexors become tight or short due
to being in a shortened position for a prolonged period of time i.e. sitting at
a desk for 8 hours a day. When the hips become tight the lower back has to
engage to a greater degree to continue staying upright. Other possibilities for
this to occur are weak or under active abs, especially in the lower region, as
well as the glutes and hamstrings. To correct this very common postural
imbalance focus should be on properly stretching the hip flexors daily, and
strengthening the abs, glutes and hamstrings. On a side
note, now that you know what lordosis is, hold yourself accountable to
contracting your glutes and lower abs as best you can while standing and/or
running or participating in any sort of activity to posteriorly tilt the pelvis
and maintain more optimal lower spine alignment.
Kyphosis – is when the spine is rounded forward in the
thoracic (upper) region. This is common in people who have rather excessive
lordosis. Basically, the back rounds forward to compensate for the
hyperextension in the lower back to bring you back up to a more upright
position (otherwise you’d be leaning/swaying back while standing). Focus should
be on strengthening the extensors in the upper back as well as stretching the trunk flexors (abs).
Forward head posture – (pretty self explanatory) when the ear is
further forward then the shoulder, given that the shoulder is where it’s
supposed to be and not rounded forward, is known as forward head posture. It is
very common for this to happen to people who have spent the majority of their
young life in school studying like crazy for years on end. It’s also a common
issue with people who sit in front of a computer daily for work. Focus should
be on strengthening the neck extensors in the cervical region as well as stretching out the cervical flexors
(always take caution when dealing with the neck).
Winged scapula and protracted
shoulder girdle – these two go hand in
hand. When the muscles on the front of the body over power the muscles on the
back side the shoulders roll forward and inhibit you from going through a full
range of motion on most upper body exercises. The shoulders rolling forward
will also place additional stress on the lower back and cause mild discomfort.
There’s a lot of work needed to correct this, but focus should be on
strengthening the serratus, rhomboids, traps (primarily lower), external
rotators as well as thorough lengthening of the pecs and lats.
Internal/External rotation of
the legs – if the feet are turned
in or internally rotated, this is an indicator of weak VMO and glute medius
combined with tight or short internal rotators. To correct, simply stretch the internal rotators and
strengthen the VMO and glute medius. If the feet are
turned out the opposite is the case in that the piriformis is tight or over
active and the internal rotators/adductors are weak. Stretch the piriformis and strengthen
the internal rotators/adductors to correct this issue.
It’s important to pay attention
to posture, as it’s highly indicative of what muscular imbalances need to be
addressed sooner than later as they not only are visually unappealing, but they’ll
ultimately prevent you from progressing while increasing the likeliness of sustaining
an acute injury or developing chronic pain.
Most people simply aren’t aware
of their imbalances and unknowingly make them worse even though they may think
they’re doing the right things because people seem to equate planes of movement
with balance. For example, it’s not uncommon to think that performing just as
many, if not more, pulling movements as pushing movements will create balanced
development, but this theory is dramatically flawed because of the effect that
the major pulling and pushing muscles have on internal rotation, and following this
advice will NOT create structural balance, as logical as it may sound, but rather
could end up making things worse.
If you have any questions
regarding posture and structural balance, feel free to contact me at ben@paramounttraining.ca. I'm available for online consulting and
personalized program design, as well as one on one training if you are located
in the Greater Toronto Area (GTA).
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