From taking hats off inside to keeping elbows off the table, many antiquated habits still have a strong hold on modern society. The idea of bad posture is one of these notions that have unfortunately been accepted as fact. Slouching is not your enemy—static posture is.
The extreme chest up, shoulders back posture has a long history. According to the Australian Journal of General Practice, the Greeks asserted that this pose was ‘linked to the divinity and intelligence of human beings.’ After being adopted by militaries in the early 16th century, this ideal spread to general society where it was used to judge people’s health, status and character at a glance. People’s postures were so ‘elegant’ because their family’s social status was literally resting on their shoulders.
For the next few seconds—or minutes, if you can—try this out: sit with your back straight and your shoulders squared. By the time you move and read to the end of this paragraph, your back will likely already be aching.
This pain is not because you are not used to it, nor is it because you have a deviant character, as someone from the 18th century might think. It turns out that this ‘good’ posture is quite bad for you.
One study titled “Is Neck Posture Subgroup in Late Adolescence a Risk Factor for Persistent Neck Pain in Young Adults?” published on NIH.gov found that ‘slouchers’ tend to have less pain later in life. The researchers asserted that “generic public health messages to sit up straight to prevent neck pain needs rethinking.”
We need to stop encouraging people to hold themselves up to this harmful standard. The assumption that we must always sit straight causes us to worry too much about how we sit, adding an unnecessary strain to our already overworked brain
If sitting up straight is not good for you, then how should you sit? Rehab hub injury clinic and sports performance center put it well: “your next posture is your best posture.” What really matters is avoiding static positions—sitting straight up for a long time is not good for you, but neither is staying crunched up in the same position for hours on end. Move around, change how you are sitting (or laying), get up and stretch!
Senior psychology major and ceramic hobbyist Cally Pickle emphasizes the importance of dynamic posture.
“When I’m working on a piece, it’s painful to maintain a ‘good’ posture while controlling the clay,” Pickle said. “Switching between different contorted positions and taking breaks to stand, stretch, and walk has saved my back.”
Next time you are hunched over your laptop, do not fret about your ‘bad’ posture. Let us ditch the rigidity of the past and shift, slouch and sprawl our way into a healthier and comfier future.
