Rant: Is Bad Posture Now “In Style” ??
Hey gang! How’s it going? Hope you’re having an awesome week …
But never mind all the niceties, I’ve got something I need to get the heck off my chest … RIGHT NOW !!!
Trainers: I need your opinion here … the rest of you: pay close attention, this is important:
What is up with all the HORRIBLE posture I’m seeing all around these days? Doesn’t anybody stand up straight anymore?
I mean good LORD … the hunched shoulders, the over-extended necks … I can barely stand to walk down the street without slapping people on the forehead as I go, telling them to stand the heck up STRAIGHT.
Bad Posture. It’s freaking everywhere. But people don’t seem to be as worried about correcting it as they used to be. 
As a matter of fact, bad posture might actually be in style right now!!
Remember that old trick mom taught us of making sure our posture was correct by walking with a book on our heads? Are those days really gone?
Looks like those days ARE gone, but let me tell you MOM WAS RIGHT. If you can stand up straight, and walk carrying a book on your head, you have some pretty awesome posture!
Here’s another post I did not long ago about a couple of conditions that trainers like to keep an eye out for (and work towards correcting in clients): Forward Head and Rounded Shoulders
So anyway, here’s what set me off this time:
I went shopping on the weekend (because what the hell ELSE is there to do in the Summer when the rain just will just freaking NOT stop coming down?) …
… and something I saw (besides all this bad posture on the people around me) has me absolutely AGHAST.
BAD POSTURE ON THE MANNEQUINS!!!
OMG … WTF?!?!
Look at this picture I snapped and tell me if you agree that their shoulders are slightly hunched, and while they don’t have any heads to prove “forward head syndrome” their over-extended necks would suggest that if they DID have heads, they’d have the syndrome …
SO?? AM I RIGHT?
Hey Trainers, Physios and Doctors … I want to hear from you … have I completely lost my mind or is there evidence of Rounded Shoulders and Forward Head Syndrome on these mannequins?
Is Bad Posture SUCH the “NORM” these days that they’re now manufacturing mannequins to this “IDEAL” ?!? (which, btw, are designed as beautiful examples of the human body in order to show off clothing looking its best so you’ll buy it … but please do NOT get me started on their lack of muscle tone … that will have to be a post for another day …)
Is bad posture actually IN STYLE these days? If not, then why manufacture mannequins with bad posture?
(I’m freaking out a little, can you tell?)
And, there’s lots of other evidence out there that also suggests that bad posture has become the ‘norm’ …
… like the design of airline seats, for instance. They push one’s head really far forward.
WHAT FOR? Is this a safety thing?
I can’t imagine that you need to have your head pushed THAT far forward for safety during a crash so I can only assume they’re designed for the comfort of the masses.
But, I personally find them terribly uncomfortable and I almost always get off the plane with neck pain (but then again, I have GOOD posture).
Although, I do understand WHY bad posture is becoming the ‘norm’.
Many of us spend our days hunched over our laptops or work-stations continuously craning our necks and shoulders forward while typing, writing, playing video games, watching movies …
*cough* … ahem, and preparing this blog post *clears throat* …
Our chests get used to being ‘all bunched up’, our backs stretch out …
And before you know it, voila. You’re one of “them” …
So … if you don’t want to become (or remain) one of “them” take this advice:
* Stand up from your work station a lot and walk around a little when you do … with your head up, eyes front, shoulders back, chest out.
* Stretch your chest … A LOT.
* Work out your back muscles … A LOT (back rows, bent over lateral raises, pull-ups or lat pulldowns, for instance) …
* And SIT UP STRAIGHT when you’re at your computer. If you work on a laptop, get a riser for the unit and another keyboard for hand level so you can look straight at the monitor, instead of down at it, while you type, watch, play, or blog.
GOT IT?
Good!
You don’t want your sloppy posture to get out of hand and have you wind up one of those little old ladies or men who walk so hunched over they can only look at the ground when they walk (or worse, only get around in a scooter), do you??
So, take care of yourself NOW, because ‘later’ might wind up being ‘too late’.
And be warned: if someday you’re walking down the street and you’re not practicing good posture, don’t be surprised if someone (maybe me, maybe your mom) walks past, slaps you on the forehead and tells you to stand up straight.
But, of course that won’t happen … because you know better!!
Have a fit, fun and fantastic day.
Girlwithnoname
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June 9th, 2010 at 12:22 pm
Great post GWNN!
You’re spot on. With today’s society pretty much chained to a desk and computer, the increase in poor posture is both inevitable and rampant.
It has become an area that needs special focus and attention. Plus, to make things even worse, you have most people (men predominantly) working on all the ‘mirror’ muscles and neglecting their backs. These back muscles MUST not be avoided. As a general rule of thumb, you should be doing a ratio of 2:1 back to chest exercises. So, for every chest exercise…you better be doing two back exercises.
Interestingly enough, for some people, pull-ups and pull-downs can add to the problem due to the pulling/tightening of the latisimus dorsi muscle, thus adding to the rounded shoulders…but that’s a whole other topic of conversation to get into deeper.
Roll those shoulders back, chest high, head back…and own ‘it’!
June 9th, 2010 at 3:10 pm
Thanks for the reminder GWNN! I was hunching over at my computer the very moment I found this.
The slouch may be in style but it ain’t hot!
June 9th, 2010 at 3:13 pm
Thanks Matt, all great points. Hey, loving your new blog too… keep up the great work.
J
June 9th, 2010 at 3:14 pm
HAHA Chelsea!! Same here, reading your comment … man, it really IS easy to forget!!! I think I’ll go do some back rows now! ha
June 10th, 2010 at 8:37 am
Funny that you mention the airplane seats… Southwest had an on-board survey on my flight to Seattle last weekend, and one of the questions asked about the seats – comfort, look and feel, etc.
I went OFF talking about that headrest and head positioning with regard to comfort AND how it forces really bad posture for a prolonged period of time. Seriously. I’m a short person, and it’s even worse for me, I think. It pushes my head so far forward to the point that I’m almost forced to look down my shirt the entire flight! It feels like just 1/4 inch more and my chin will be touching my chest.
As far as bad posture being the “norm” now… it’s horrible and it makes me cringe. I can’t believe what I see whenever I’m out and about. Not only that “slouched”/rounded shoulders/forward head/slacker look, but also (and I don’t mean to hijack your rant with one of my own) … What is UP WITH THE DRAGGING OF THE FEET? Do people not know how to walk properly anymore? Perfectly healthy young people walk around shuffling, or dragging… Really???? Pick up your damn feet! Not only is that horrible, it’s annoying to be walking in front or behind these people.
June 10th, 2010 at 9:58 am
HA Ivonne, no worries about hijacking my rant… I only wish I could give you some kind of *ULTRA-APPROVED* status!! I agree with everything you say (and I’m not a short person but that whole ‘looking down your shirt the whole time’ comment had me on the floor!! Hilarious (and I know exactly what you mean).
and foot shuffling? yah, I know, it makes me nutso too. there’s no excuse for it, its annoying and sloppy…
thanks for the comment!!! :-)
June 13th, 2010 at 12:55 pm
This post had me chuckling out loud. My posture is pretty good probably from my mother swatting me on the back telling me to straighten up. The manaquins are pretty telling of today’s society tho, I agree.
Hope all is well!
xx
Stephanie