Best Posture Exercises for Back Pain in Towson MD

Why Does Posture Matter in Towson MD?

Your mom probably told you to sit up straight but did you know what your posture can actually impact your health? Many of the problems we treat are a result of poor posture or postural dysfunctions. But what exactly is posture and what constitutes good posture other than “sitting up straight”?

Posture is simply the position in which we hold our bodies while standing, sitting, or lying down. The term “good posture” means that the body is aligned correctly with the right amount of muscle tension. Whether you’re sitting, standing, running, walking, or lying down, gravity is constantly exerting force on your muscles and joints and those muscles have to maintain the right amount of muscle tension to keep you from crumbling to the ground.

When you’re in a standing position with correct posture, your weight should sit primarily on the balls of your feet. Your knees will be bent slightly, but not locked, and you want to keep your feet about shoulder-width apart. Allow your arms to naturally hang down by the sides of your body as you stand straight and tall with your shoulders pulled back. Your chin should remain parallel with the ground so that it is not pulling your head in any particular direction. It’s simply resting on top of your spinal column.

It’s quite common for our patients to have to consciously work on sitting with correct posture because they have developed bad habits over the years. If you’re sitting properly your feet should be firmly planted on the floor, not crossed. Your ankles should be in front of your knees so make sure you aren’t sweeping them backward and tucking them behind your knees. You may be more comfortable using a backrest to support your low- and mid-back so don’t hesitate to use a back support. Relax your shoulders and keep your chin parallel to the ground.

Pay careful attention to your chin to avoid bad posture. Are you looking down at a screen or jutting your head forward? You may need to lift your screen so that it is more ergonomically correct and encourages correct posture.

Correct posture helps us keep bones and joints in correct alignment so that our muscles are used correctly, decreasing the abnormal wearing of joint surfaces that can result in degenerative arthritis and joint pain. It also reduces the stress put on the ligaments that hold our spinal joints together, minimizing the likelihood of injury.

The Posture Program - The Best Posture Exercises for Back Pain

Emily is currently working through our Posture Program which we use to correct postural dysfunctions such as Upper Cross Syndrome and Anterior Pelvic Tilt. Our Posture Program is a fully customized, personalized, 1-on-1 program built around you and your unique needs.

The special part about this program is that it looks at the entire body holistically. We look at everything from the ankle range of motion to how the shoulders, neck, and upper back move. We examine this not just from a chiropractic and orthopedic standpoint, but from a physical fitness standpoint, as well. Once we've identified where your weak links are and where your strengths are, we build a personalized multi-phase strength training program based around your strengths and your limitations.

In this program, we always start with mobility work which includes things like foam rolling, breathing, targeted stretching, and activities based on your goals and your outcomes. From there, we move to a power warm-up sequence, and then we finish with a full-body three by three strength training program. Each phase of the exercise program is designed around you to maximize your gains while decreasing your risk for injury. This level of personalization allows us to get our patients great results.

We see countless people each year who decide to work on their physical fitness that wind up injuring themselves again and we want to prevent that from happening to you. With the Functional Strength Program, we're able to walk you through a physical training program based on your needs and your capabilities without sacrificing that problem that brought you in in the first place. Using a combination of bodyweight exercises, low tech training, dumbbells, pull-up bars, and free weights, we’re able to create a safe environment for you to work out and get results.

Stretches and exercises play a huge role in our Posture Program and one of the most effective tools for this is a foam roller. You simply place a foam roller on the ground and use it to roll the muscles in your shoulders and upper back. For this exercise, we recommend spending about 40 seconds - 1 minute per muscle group for a total of 5-6 minutes per day.

Loosening the tissues in your neck and shoulders may be a bit uncomfortable, so don’t be alarmed if it doesn’t feel great immediately. If, however, you experience more pain after doing this you should see a chiropractor.

We use the Brettzel stretch after loosening up muscles with the foam roller. Lie down on the floor on your side with one knee up on a foam roll or pad to keep the hips aligned. Keep your other leg down in a neutral position and make sure your head is supported so you don’t strain your neck.

Take the hand of the arm that is in contact with the ground and grab the knee that is flexed up at belly button height. Take the other hand and grab the ankle of the leg that is behind the back, while keeping the hip in extension. If it is too difficult to grab the ankle you can use a towel.

Begin inhaling and when you exhale start to rotate the shoulders away from the upper leg. Cycle through this progression 5-10 times until the shoulder is turned as far as possible (coming close to the ground) or until you stop making progress. This is a great stretch for opening up the upper back.

Are you dealing with back pain like Emily? We can drastically reduce pain for most people on the first visit and get you feeling better. Click here or call (410) 296-7700 to schedule your consultation and we’ll explain how we can help you feel better faster.