I make a conscious effort to not consider how long I spend slumped over my desk. When I’m done with that, I like to read while curled up in bed or curled up on the couch. Because I sleep on my side, I am essentially folded in half during the night. I therefore don’t have to speculate as to why my shoulders curve and my upper chest feels constricted and collapsed. It’s good practice to use yoga poses to improve posture.
My yoga asana practise has helped me maintain generally good posture, but my tendency to hunch my shoulders forward could be causing the dreaded “dowager’s hump.”
When you regularly move a certain way or hold your body in a certain position, that is what happens. According to New Orleans-based yoga instructor and anatomical specialist Arturo Peal, your body will start to take on that structure.
According to him, “all types of connective tissue react to stresses exerted on them.” They react to the force of gravity as well as the pull of the muscles and tendons that are pulling on them.
He uses the bodies of musicians as an illustration. “When I observe a musician’s posture, I can tell that their head is slightly cocked to the left and that their left shoulder is forward. They are most likely a violinist or violist, the man asserts. “That’s [from] sitting in the same position for hours on end.”
Practising yoga poses to improve posture
He claims that yoga can be an excellent technique for reversing these ingrained positions. Throwing your shoulders back won’t make you look stronger; instead, show confidence and optimism by keeping your chest open and displaying a broad collarbone.
Performing all ranges of motion is crucial, according to Peale. Fortunately, you can move your shoulder in every direction because it is the most flexible joint in your body.
I’m also adding postures that resist that forward pull in order to loosen up tension in my upper chest—the region in front of my shoulder and just below my collar bone where the pectoral muscles join. Reaching back in these poses requires using my shoulders’ full range of motion. I may continue to be proud of my posture by adding these seven exercises to my practise.
Begin in tabletop position with your hands slightly in front of your shoulders and shoulder-distance apart. This is the cow pose (bitilasana). The front of your mat should be parallel to the wrist creases on your hands.
Through your hands, forcefully press the ground.
Taking a deep breath in, expand your collarbones, lift your sternum and chin, and lower your belly to arch your back.
To increase the range of motion in your mid and upper back, keep your neck long and your abdominal muscles mildly toned. Draw your shoulders down and away from your ears as you enlarge the area between your shoulder blades.
Return to a neutral spine to release the pose. As a counter posture, practise Marjaryasana (Cat Pose).
Start in Salabhasana, or the Locust Pose, by lying on your stomach with your feet firmly planted and your hands, palms facing back.
To engage your quadriceps, straighten your big toes and push down with all ten toenails.
To widen your lower back, rotate your inner thighs upward.
Take a deep breath in and lift your inner thighs before moving on to your head, chest, arms, and legs.
Reach your hands toward your heels while rolling your shoulders back and up away from the floor. Maintain a long back of the neck and place more emphasis on elevating your sternum than your chin.
Release your arms, legs, and head to the floor gradually to exit the stance.
Lie on your stomach in the bow pose (Dhanurasana), placing a blanket under your pelvis if necessary. Keep your toes engaged while you flex your knees and extend your feet toward your torso.
Grab the outside borders of your ankles with both of your back hands. Firmly flex your feet.
Lift your shoulders, ribs, and head as you inhale. Lengthen your tailbone, elevate your thighs, and thrust your legs back into your hands while firmly holding on as you exhale.
From this point on, keep looking ahead while lifting your sternum.
Release your grasp on your ankles to exit the stance, then stand up straight again.
Wheel/Upward-Facing Bow Pose, or Urdhva Dhanurasana
- Laying on your back, start out. Kneel down and place your parallel, hip-distance feet directly beneath yours.
- With your palms facing down and your fingers pointed in the direction of your shoulders, reach back and position your hands beside your ears.
- Inhale, then, with an exhalation, elevate your hips, torso, and head high enough to set the crown of your head on the mat without letting your feet or knees splay apart. Never put any weight on your head when standing.
- Pull your upper arms into their sockets, draw your elbows toward one another, and begin to arch your middle and upper back.
- On the subsequent inhale, ascend into the posture while pressing down with your hands and feet.
- Reach your tailbone toward the backs of your knees while rotating your inner thighs toward the floor. Check to see whether your feet are not turned out and use your big toes to dig.
- Lift your sternum in the direction you are facing and let your head hang naturally. Maintain at least a small bend in your knees while keeping your arms as straight as you can.
- Tuck your chin in and bring your body to the floor to exit the position. (Avoid placing your head’s crown on the ground.)
Dolphin position
With your knees exactly beneath your hips, assume the tabletop posture to start. With your shoulders just over your elbows, lower your forearms to the ground.
Exhale as you bend your knees away from the floor and curl your toes beneath. You are allowed to maintain a modest bend in your knees and elevate your heels off the ground.
Extend your tailbone toward the pubis, away from the back of your pelvis. As you draw your inner legs up into your groynes, lift your sitting bones toward the ceiling.
Keep actively driving your forearms into the ground. As you expand your shoulder blades away from your spine and pull them toward your tailbone, firmly press your shoulder blades into your back.
Do not let your head hang or rest against the floor; instead, hold it between your upper arms. Your sternum should be raised off the ground.
Although you can straighten your knees, it is recommended to maintain them bent if your upper back is rounding.
Release your knees to the floor while exhaling, then lower yourself into Child’s Pose to exit the pose.
Gomukhasana (Cow Face) – another good yoga pose to improve posture
Beginning in Dandasana (Staff Pose), bring your right heel to the outside of your left hip and cross your right leg over your left.
To bring your left heel to the outside of your right hip, flex your left knee. With both knees pointed directly ahead, stack your right knee directly over your left.
Lift out of your lower back, extend your spine, and press evenly with your sitting bones.
Take a deep breath in and extend your right arm to the side, rotating it so the palm faces back and the thumb is downward.
Bring your right arm behind your back with your palm facing out and upper arm drawn in close to your body as you exhale. Bend your elbow. Right fingers extend toward the base of your neck while your elbow points in the direction of your sacrum.
Take a deep breath in and extend your left arm straight up to the ceiling, palm facing the midline.
Reach your hand down toward your neck while bending your left elbow. As your hand reaches along the spine, bring your elbow up toward the ceiling and close to your face.
Reach out your hands and touch each other. If you can, clasp your hands or fingers.
Exhale to leave the position, carefully releasing your arms to your sides, and then resuming Dandasana. On the other side, repeat.
Camatkarasana (Wild Thing)
- begin in the Adho Mukha Svanasana pose (Downward-Facing Dog).
- Roll like Vasisthasana onto the outside of your right foot while shifting your weight into your right hand (Side Plank Pose).
- Lift your hips and flex your left knee as you inhale. Step your left foot back and plant your toes on the ground while maintaining your knee bent as you exhale.
- Maintain your composure and use your right hand to make a clawing motion. Hold the right arm bone’s head back.
- To create a sweeping motion of the shoulder blades into the back of the rib cage, arch through your upper back.
- Lift your hips higher on an inhale until your right foot is firmly planted on the ground and your back bends more.
- Allow your head to tilt back and raise your left arm overhead from your heart.
- Reduce your hips and sit down to leave the posture, or turn your body to the left and come back to Down Dog. On the opposite side, repeat. Using yoga poses to improve posture is good practice.