Maintaining a good posture may seem difficult, even hurtful, at
times. But it is imperative for a healthy body. It boosts your
confidence, keeps your spine happy, makes you slimmer, improves
breathing and so on. These sound good, but how to go about it?
Luckily, here are some easy exercises that’ll prep you into improving your posture. So, quit slouching and read on.
Seated T-Spine Openers
For this exercise, grab a chair and sit straight, with your feet flat on the ground. Then hold your hands behind your neck to position your elbows close to one another. When they are tightly placed, lift your elbows and chest upwards, like you’re doing a backbend using your upper back muscles. Remember to keep your lower back muscles straight. Repeat this exercise as many times as you’re comfortable with.
Single Leg Extension
The best way to improve your slouching is to focus on improving your core muscles, i.e., the muscles in your abdomen and lower back, which connect directly to your pelvis and spine. This exercise trains the core muscles to coordinate, and stabilizes the pelvis.
For this, lie on your back, plant your feet on the ground, and bend your knees. Then clasp your hands behind your head and lift it up as you would do while doing crunches. Now gradually lift one leg off the floor (about 45 degrees) and keep it straight while pulling the other bent knee towards your chest. Keep your lower back glued on the floor. Repeat by switching legs.
King Cobra Stretch
This can be a little tricky sometimes, so keep up. Lie on your stomach with your palms down on the ground, just outside your shoulders. Flex one leg up on the side and straighten the other one behind you. Now, lift your upper body till your arms are straight. Remember to keep your shoulder blades down and back.
After this, keep your elbows close to your sides and gently twist your body to look back to your bent leg on one side. Hold this posture for 30 seconds. Then release and repeat with the other leg.
Reverse Shoulder Shrugs
Well, this exercise is particularly helpful for people with long hours of desk jobs. For this, you can choose to either stand or sit upright. Keep your head in a neutral position. Lift your shoulders as you do during a shoulder shrug, then roll them back down. If you’re suffering from neck or shoulder stiffness, go for this easy exercise 2 to 3 times a day with 20 repetitions each time.
Yoga Sit-Up
This exercise is again a good focus on your core muscles. Lie flat on your back, with your legs bent and feet planted flat. Now, exhale deeply so as to pull your navel inside, closer to your spine. Now one after another, lift your arms, head, and shoulders off the ground until you are placed in a sitting posture. Then gradually move back to the ground. Repeat this around 3 to 5 times and keep your core strong.
These are some healthy tit-bits. Don’t forget to munch on them to build up the correct posture.