How Good Posture Can Prevent Back Pain
At any given time in the US, about 31 million Americans are suffering from some kind of back pain. For many of those people, the cause of that back pain is something totally unsuspected – poor posture. You might be surprised to learn what an impact poor posture can have on your life, and how it can contribute seriously to back pains that may stay with you for your entire adult life. There is no question that having good posture can prevent back pain and save you a great deal of grief, so it will be to your advantage to work on developing better posture.
Why is good posture important?
Not only does good posture have an impact on how you look, but it will also affect the way that you feel every day. There are other benefits to having good posture which may not be quite so apparent as your appearance and your overall outlook. Other reasons why good posture is important include the following:
- improved digestion
- less wear and tear on muscles and joints
- reduced strain on joints and ligaments
- lower occurrence of back injuries and persistent pain
- an improved mood
- increased levels of energy
- proper alignment of bones and joints.
Bad posture is very easy to slip into, and it can start with slumping over your desk or slouching on your couch. Before you even realize it, you might be slouching as you stand or walk, and you may be persistently standing with most of your weight on one leg. Many people acquire bad posture while at work, sitting at the desk for many hours each day, and unconsciously becoming hunched over their work without realizing it.
Good posture relieves pain
When you have poor posture, it places a great deal of stress on a number of areas of the body such as your joints, muscles, and the discs in your back. This stress will be relieved once you assume good posture again, but if that doesn’t happen, the stress will continue to mount until the affected areas become weaker. Once those areas do weaken, you’ll find it difficult to resume good posture, and you’ll slip into the bad posture setup which has now become easier for your body.
Being hunched over your computer at your work desk is one great example, because this will cause the muscles in your back and your abdomen to become strained and painful. The blood supply to these areas is reduced, and that increases weakness and stiffness in those areas. When you lift heavy objects using poor posture, you can cause some major damage to spinal discs and to the muscles of your back. When a spinal herniation or bulge does occur, it exerts pressure on all the nearby spinal nerves, and that can cause pain all throughout your extremities.
When you maintain good posture through lifting and while sitting at your desk at work, all the opposite effects will happen. Your body will maintain its correct position, with no weakening of muscles and no strain on joints. This is the way your body was meant to perform, and when you depart from this, it can lead to a number of unpleasant consequences.
If you are feeling back or neck pain due to poor posture from your workspace give us a call @ (608) 402-6005 or claim your FREE consultation and Exam today!
