Posture 101

The Alexander Technique has been practised since the 1890s, it’s a practical method to re-learn the good habits we had as a child. Noël Kingsley, an Alexander Technique Teacher for the last 38 years and author of Free Yourself From Back Pain (Kyle Cathie), says “re-learning good posture brings the best out of you by encouraging your body to work in harmony. Bad posture is basically some muscles doing too much and others too little.” With his gentle guidance you are encouraged to ‘lead with your head’, allow your ribs and diaphragm to perform properly making breathing easier and learn techniques to relieve joint pressure and extend your limbs. It has been known to even make you taller.

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Lifting weights to improve posture may seem strange but the repetitive moves strengthen the upper back, lats, lower back and abdominals which, as we have learnt, pulls our body back in to balance. A personal trainer at a gym will be able to show you the moves you need to perfect but it’s important to remember that when it comes to using weights, for women it’s ‘less weight, more repetition’.

Pilates exercises are designed to restore the natural curves of the spine and rebalance the muscles and joints by focusing on improving core strength. A key element to good posture is strengthening the muscles in the upper back and learning how to keep the shoulder blades down and pulled slightly together. Pilates can help you to achieve this and with practice, you will be able to hold your stomach in and keep your pelvis and lower back in the optimal position for good posture. And if it’s good enough for Sarah Jessica Parker …

They’re words no one wants to hear but we know it to be the truth - wearing heels daily is not good for our posture. “Heels throw you off balance and shorten the hamstrings which affect posture”, says Kingsley. Like most great things in life they are fine in small doses but should be the exception rather than the rule. Try wearing shoes that correct posture to and from the office and swap for heels once safely behind your desk. MBT’s are a classic, they mimic walking on soft, uneven ground with their curved sole and Masai Sensor in the heel which creates ‘natural instability’. The body compensates to create stability which improves both balance and posture.
MBT , Moja Lux Ice, £169.99

As well as being heavenly, massage can also help correct postural problems by re-training the overworked muscles that pull your body out of balance. Pure Massage (puremassage.com ) targets the core of the body which can hold excessive tension using a combination of Swedish, Thai, acupressure and deep tissue massage – the neck, shoulders and lower back are continual problem areas that a treatment will address. The therapeutic movements can also relieve pressure around the joints, allowing the body to move without stiffness.

If you tend to slump forward when sitting at your desk (the majority of us do), then a tennis ball could be just the trick. While sitting in your chair, slide a tennis ball between your back and the back of the chair and hold the ball in place by pressing your back against it. Keeping the tennis ball in place forces you to sit up straight and helps remind you to practice better posture. A little uncomfortable maybe, but it’s only necessary for the length of time it takes for you to be aware of how you are sitting.