How you stand and carry yourself can have a unimaginable effect on your mood and on how the world sees you. If you project to the world that you are happy and confident, you will be rewarded with actually feeling happy and confident. You can achieve that by perfecting your posture and standing tall. I might not have been blessed with the stature of a Greek god but I have learned that by holding my head up high with my shoulders firmly thrust back, I can come on like a literary Lion King walking the streets of my favorite NYC haunts!
Most people are unaware of their actual posture and how it affects us physically and emotionally. We assume that since our knuckles are not scraping the sidewalks that we must be standing upright to the best of our ability but for most, that is far from reality. Physically, a weak abdominal core and days spent hunched over a computer (or in my case a typewriter; I could never get the hang of silent keypads that you all can't do without), can curl your torso into a permanent 'C' shape. And you’d be surprised what a few emotional spirit beatings at the hands of life can do to our bodies. Shoulders weighed down by mental turmoil, anxiety, depression and stress can curl forward before you know it and the longer that position is left uncorrected, the harder it will be for you to straighten up without discomfort.
With that in mind, there is no time like to present to throw off the physical and emotional barriers that way us down and get our bodies into the position they were meant to be.
1. Stand against a wall with your heels touching the baseboard; your back, shoulders and head should all be in contact with the wall. Make sure your body weight is evenly spread.
With that in mind, there is no time like to present to throw off the physical and emotional barriers that way us down and get our bodies into the position they were meant to be.
1. Stand against a wall with your heels touching the baseboard; your back, shoulders and head should all be in contact with the wall. Make sure your body weight is evenly spread.
2. Imagine that the top of your head is attached to the ceiling with a piece of string, and 'pull' yourself upwards, feeling yourself stretch from the lumbar region of your spine (that's the lower back).
3. Victorian ladies of the aristocracy were known for their outstanding posture but I think it had less to do with their general air of superiority and more to do with these cruel contraptions that were know as corsets and waist-cinchers 😄
Pour yourself a cup of tea to get into the Victorian mood and pretend you are laced into a corset and contract your abdominal muscles, sucking your tummy up underneath your rib-cage. (Even better if you have a real corset laying around, try it on and see how your body is supposed to feel. A corset is very unforgiving to bad posture and forces you to sit or stand up properly.) While still in the 'corset frame of mind', let your shoulders relax downwards, getting as much distance as possible between your shoulders and your ears. Do a quick run through of your whole body and make sure you aren't holding extra tension in the classic places: shoulders, neck, hands and even your legs.
4. With your chin lifted slightly so that it's parallel with the floor, walk away from the wall, cross the room and then back to your starting point. Repeat a few times to familiarize yourself with how your body positioning should feel when mobile.
Repeat this exercise every morning until it becomes second nature to you and make sure you make a habit of 'checking yourself' throughout the day. Whenever you remember and have a moment to yourself, run through steps 1-4 to reinforce the perfect posture position.
(You could even supplement the tips above with the OG standard by adding a book to balance on your head while doing step 4. A bonus for those with a perfectly formed head but I tend to think of it as a bit of an impediment for the rest of us mere mortals who might not be as perfectly shaped.)
I've unearthed this adorable little cheatsheet you can use so that you can ensure the proper form until you re-train your muscles.
Pour yourself a cup of tea to get into the Victorian mood and pretend you are laced into a corset and contract your abdominal muscles, sucking your tummy up underneath your rib-cage. (Even better if you have a real corset laying around, try it on and see how your body is supposed to feel. A corset is very unforgiving to bad posture and forces you to sit or stand up properly.) While still in the 'corset frame of mind', let your shoulders relax downwards, getting as much distance as possible between your shoulders and your ears. Do a quick run through of your whole body and make sure you aren't holding extra tension in the classic places: shoulders, neck, hands and even your legs.
4. With your chin lifted slightly so that it's parallel with the floor, walk away from the wall, cross the room and then back to your starting point. Repeat a few times to familiarize yourself with how your body positioning should feel when mobile.
Repeat this exercise every morning until it becomes second nature to you and make sure you make a habit of 'checking yourself' throughout the day. Whenever you remember and have a moment to yourself, run through steps 1-4 to reinforce the perfect posture position.
(You could even supplement the tips above with the OG standard by adding a book to balance on your head while doing step 4. A bonus for those with a perfectly formed head but I tend to think of it as a bit of an impediment for the rest of us mere mortals who might not be as perfectly shaped.)
I've unearthed this adorable little cheatsheet you can use so that you can ensure the proper form until you re-train your muscles.
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