I had an idea while walking home from the grocery store with my backpack full of groceries. As I walked, I suddenly became aware of how heavy the pack was, and that it was causing me to lean forward at the hips (shortening my hip flexors) and to curl my shoulders forward (shortening my pectoral muscles). This is not great posture, especially for people who spend a lot of time sitting (with shortened hip flexors) at a computer (with forward shoulders).

For people who wear backpacks, even while walking upright, the natural tendency is toward this very same poor postural position. This “back pack posture” is very common in today’s society, and is often associated with low back and neck problems.
Read more…

A good trainer will work to not only make you stronger, more fit, and less squishy, but also to help improve your overall movement and to contribute to healthy joints and tissues. We do this by working on symmetry, and focusing on stability and mobility in the right places. But typically, the time you spend working out is just not enough to counteract the habits we all have throughout the “other 23 hours of the day”.

What habits am I talking about? The way we stand, sit, walk, sleep, watch tv, and drive all impact our bodies. We all have habits that we do every day. Many of them seem to be so minute, and yet we do them so much that in fact we do them in huge volumes. That adds up and can have a big impact on our ability to move well. Do you know what yours are?
Read more…