The Importance of Good Posture

Stop! Before you read the rest of this post, check your posture.

Is it in the correct position? Or is it slumped? Do you know the fundamentals of correct posture?

Many of us do not give much thought to the subject. This is unfortunate because keeping your spine in the optimal position can deliver a lot more than just a pain-free back. Posture can affect other areas of your body, including your respiratory, circulatory and digestive systems.

New evidence also reveals the close connection between your posture and how you think about yourself.

Making the effort to be aware of your posture can go a long way to reducing pain and feeling better about yourself. Incorrect posture can actually cause pain to intensify and persist.

New research published in the Journal of Experimental Social Psychology found when individuals adopted dominant, upright postures they were able to endure more pain compared to individuals who assumed submissive postures. The researchers believe assuming a dominant posture signals to the brain that it has more control of its current condition and environment, and it may cause hormonal changes in the body that boost pain-killing hormones.

Aside from pain, chronic posture problems can lead to joint and disk degeneration and damage to ligaments, muscles and cartilage.

While it helps lessen pain, good posture also impacts internal thoughts. Employment coaches recommend job seekers maintain excellent posture because it communicates self confidence to job interviewers, but new research shows posture affects your internal confidence.

The Kellogg School of Management at Northwestern University recently published a study that showed people who used proper posture and expansive body positions actually increased their sense of power and likelihood of taking action, regardless of their job title or position within an organization. The authors of the Kellogg study were surprised that a person’s job position, whether at the top of the corporate ladder or at the bottom, did not seem to have a significant effect on self-confidence. Instead, consistently good posture actually had a bigger impact on how likely you are to believe your own thoughts.