Comments on: 30 Days to a Better Man Day 22: Improve Your Posture http://artofmanliness.com/2009/06/21/30-days-to-a-better-man-day-22-improve-your-posture/ Men's Interests and Lifestyle Sat, 20 Mar 2010 04:44:46 +0000 http://wordpress.org/?v=2.9.2 hourly 1 By: R. Marc Andrews 503 583 2037 Good Posture: How to Improve Your Posture | The Art of Manlinesshttp://artofmanliness.com/2009/06/21/30-days-to-a-better-man-day-22-improve-your-posture/#comment-97288 R. Marc Andrews 503 583 2037 Good Posture: How to Improve Your Posture | The Art of Manliness Sun, 14 Mar 2010 04:12:13 +0000 http://artofmanliness.com/?p=3613#comment-97288 [...] Good Posture: How to Improve Your Posture | The Art of Manliness They are the battle cries of moms and elementary school teachers all over the world: “Sit up straight!” and “Stop slouching!” Despite what our third grade minds may have thought, sitting up straight wasn’t a stress position used to break unruly children. Believe it or not, our parents and teachers had a reason for issuing these demands. They intuitively knew of the health and psychological benefits people with proper posture enjoyed, and they were just trying instill the habit into our young, impressionable minds. To their disappointment, we probably ignored them and went on with our slouching ways. via artofmanliness.com [...] [...] Good Posture: How to Improve Your Posture | The Art of Manliness They are the battle cries of moms and elementary school teachers all over the world: “Sit up straight!” and “Stop slouching!” Despite what our third grade minds may have thought, sitting up straight wasn’t a stress position used to break unruly children. Believe it or not, our parents and teachers had a reason for issuing these demands. They intuitively knew of the health and psychological benefits people with proper posture enjoyed, and they were just trying instill the habit into our young, impressionable minds. To their disappointment, we probably ignored them and went on with our slouching ways. via artofmanliness.com [...]

]]> By: Andrewhttp://artofmanliness.com/2009/06/21/30-days-to-a-better-man-day-22-improve-your-posture/#comment-91455 Andrew Thu, 18 Feb 2010 21:50:54 +0000 http://artofmanliness.com/?p=3613#comment-91455 Great article. As a Structural Integration practitioner, I'm very aware of people's posture and movement. A person's body language and their movement communicates volumes about their mood, their attitude, their confidence, how they feel about themselves, how they feel about the world, etc... As Martha Graham said, "The body says what words cannot."I highly recommend getting some skilled bodywork (ala Rolfing, Structural Integration or some other structurally oriented therapy). If done well, it will increase your awareness of your body and your sense of being comfortable and confident in your skin, which is important for a man. Better posture and more easeful movement will follow. People take note of a man (or woman) who is structurally aligned in a relaxed and grounded way (not in a strict 'military posture' or some other contrived way). And on top of that, as the article notes, it improves the natural functioning of your whole system. Great article. As a Structural Integration practitioner, I’m very aware of people’s posture and movement. A person’s body language and their movement communicates volumes about their mood, their attitude, their confidence, how they feel about themselves, how they feel about the world, etc… As Martha Graham said, “The body says what words cannot.”

I highly recommend getting some skilled bodywork (ala Rolfing, Structural Integration or some other structurally oriented therapy). If done well, it will increase your awareness of your body and your sense of being comfortable and confident in your skin, which is important for a man. Better posture and more easeful movement will follow. People take note of a man (or woman) who is structurally aligned in a relaxed and grounded way (not in a strict ‘military posture’ or some other contrived way). And on top of that, as the article notes, it improves the natural functioning of your whole system.

]]> By: Joehttp://artofmanliness.com/2009/06/21/30-days-to-a-better-man-day-22-improve-your-posture/#comment-72171 Joe Thu, 31 Dec 2009 16:31:39 +0000 http://artofmanliness.com/?p=3613#comment-72171 Great article! I've only just found this blog and gradually working my way through some of the old articles... My wife is always commenting on my posture and I know that it is not good for my health or my image. This is something all good men need to keep an eye on until they strengthen their muscles and no longer need to think about it. Great article! I’ve only just found this blog and gradually working my way through some of the old articles… My wife is always commenting on my posture and I know that it is not good for my health or my image. This is something all good men need to keep an eye on until they strengthen their muscles and no longer need to think about it.

]]> By: aaronhttp://artofmanliness.com/2009/06/21/30-days-to-a-better-man-day-22-improve-your-posture/#comment-59064 aaron Wed, 11 Nov 2009 10:32:37 +0000 http://artofmanliness.com/?p=3613#comment-59064 with all of the calls to improve our posture it is easy to forget what holds us out of posture. over development (shortening) of specific musculature while weakening of others leads us to fight our own muscle length just to sit or stand up straight. massage therapy and physical therapy among others can help us to lengthen the shortened musculature while strengthening the others. siting/standing tall was never so easy as after I had my shortened pecs and abs stretched and my weakened erectors and rhomboids activated by exercise. with all of the calls to improve our posture it is easy to forget what holds us out of posture. over development (shortening) of specific musculature while weakening of others leads us to fight our own muscle length just to sit or stand up straight. massage therapy and physical therapy among others can help us to lengthen the shortened musculature while strengthening the others. siting/standing tall was never so easy as after I had my shortened pecs and abs stretched and my weakened erectors and rhomboids activated by exercise.

]]> By: Amityhttp://artofmanliness.com/2009/06/21/30-days-to-a-better-man-day-22-improve-your-posture/#comment-42130 Amity Mon, 17 Aug 2009 13:10:25 +0000 http://artofmanliness.com/?p=3613#comment-42130 thanks guys, this is helpful. thanks guys, this is helpful.

]]> By: Tesshttp://artofmanliness.com/2009/06/21/30-days-to-a-better-man-day-22-improve-your-posture/#comment-33942 Tess Thu, 25 Jun 2009 19:12:52 +0000 http://artofmanliness.com/?p=3613#comment-33942 @ Jesvin "I personally would call a girl with an upright posture a tomboy."You obviously don't know many true ladies. I don't know about you, but I never saw Jackie Kennedy, Grace Kelly, Katharine Hepburn, Michelle Obama, or any other real ladies with anything less than impeccable posture and poise. Upright posture shows that, no matter your gender, you are confident, self-assured, and proud. Correct posture isn't just for men, it's for everyone who wants to be their best. @ Jesvin
“I personally would call a girl with an upright posture a tomboy.”

You obviously don’t know many true ladies. I don’t know about you, but I never saw Jackie Kennedy, Grace Kelly, Katharine Hepburn, Michelle Obama, or any other real ladies with anything less than impeccable posture and poise. Upright posture shows that, no matter your gender, you are confident, self-assured, and proud. Correct posture isn’t just for men, it’s for everyone who wants to be their best.

]]> By: Dennishttp://artofmanliness.com/2009/06/21/30-days-to-a-better-man-day-22-improve-your-posture/#comment-33774 Dennis Wed, 24 Jun 2009 17:49:40 +0000 http://artofmanliness.com/?p=3613#comment-33774 My dad taught me a trick for developing good posture years ago. Either standing or sitting, raise your arms out to the side and straight up over your head until your fingers touch. Then lower your arms to your sides, not moving anything but your arms. Now you're in proper posture. My dad taught me a trick for developing good posture years ago. Either standing or sitting, raise your arms out to the side and straight up over your head until your fingers touch. Then lower your arms to your sides, not moving anything but your arms. Now you’re in proper posture.

]]> By: A software engineerhttp://artofmanliness.com/2009/06/21/30-days-to-a-better-man-day-22-improve-your-posture/#comment-33695 A software engineer Wed, 24 Jun 2009 06:18:19 +0000 http://artofmanliness.com/?p=3613#comment-33695 Pro tip for good posture, paraphrased from Robert Cohen's /Acting One/:In your mind, locate your nipples. Go three inches (7.5cm) straight down from them and find the nearest rib. Imagine a pair of hooks suspended from some wire, pulling up and away from your body at a 45-degree angle. Now you're sitting/standing up perfectly straight.See?Works like a charm for me. Took until my blow-off class senior year of college to finally get some advice on standing up straight that actually works!Cheers Pro tip for good posture, paraphrased from Robert Cohen’s /Acting One/:

In your mind, locate your nipples. Go three inches (7.5cm) straight down from them and find the nearest rib. Imagine a pair of hooks suspended from some wire, pulling up and away from your body at a 45-degree angle. Now you’re sitting/standing up perfectly straight.

See?

Works like a charm for me. Took until my blow-off class senior year of college to finally get some advice on standing up straight that actually works!

Cheers

]]> By: Shaunhttp://artofmanliness.com/2009/06/21/30-days-to-a-better-man-day-22-improve-your-posture/#comment-33655 Shaun Tue, 23 Jun 2009 23:06:20 +0000 http://artofmanliness.com/?p=3613#comment-33655 Damn, now I have to re-adjust my monitor height..I'm about 5 inches taller than I was a minute a go :) Damn, now I have to re-adjust my monitor height..I’m about 5 inches taller than I was a minute a go :)

]]> By: mikehttp://artofmanliness.com/2009/06/21/30-days-to-a-better-man-day-22-improve-your-posture/#comment-33455 mike Mon, 22 Jun 2009 18:18:36 +0000 http://artofmanliness.com/?p=3613#comment-33455 this is a good article, but it is inadequate in dealing with the problem. your posture is determined by unconscious processes, and cant be fixed by thinking about it and correcting yourself. this works for a few moments, but as soon as you stop thinking about it, your posture returns to whatever it was initially. if you are thinking about it constantly, you can make some improvements, but this is a very inefficient method. if you look at young children, their posture is perfect. they just hold themselves naturally, because they haven't learnt bad habits or wrong posture. bad posture is often a result of a lifetime of bad habits. shy people stare at the ground all the time, until their bodies get used to having the head bowed. if you work too much on developing your pectorals, and not enough on your back, it will pull your shoulders together. if you want to correct your this, you would do it through relaxing your pectorals or building up your back muscles. workouts that concentrate on one muscle group can leave us asymmetrical- too many sit ups will shorten our abs, pulling our heads down, because we haven't balanced this exercise with developing our back muscles. i guess this is a long winded way of pointing out that the best way to correct posture is not just by telling ourselves to sit up straight. we need to relax over-tensed muscles, develop our bodies symmetrically, and help our bodies to do the right thing automatically. techniques like the alexander method are pretty good at this, and the best thing ive ever discovered on the subject is by a guy called Rob Brinded. he made a pretty interesting program designed to improve guys body language to make them more attractive, and i would highly recommend it. its called code of the natural. this is a good article, but it is inadequate in dealing with the problem. your posture is determined by unconscious processes, and cant be fixed by thinking about it and correcting yourself. this works for a few moments, but as soon as you stop thinking about it, your posture returns to whatever it was initially. if you are thinking about it constantly, you can make some improvements, but this is a very inefficient method. if you look at young children, their posture is perfect. they just hold themselves naturally, because they haven’t learnt bad habits or wrong posture.
bad posture is often a result of a lifetime of bad habits. shy people stare at the ground all the time, until their bodies get used to having the head bowed. if you work too much on developing your pectorals, and not enough on your back, it will pull your shoulders together. if you want to correct your this, you would do it through relaxing your pectorals or building up your back muscles. workouts that concentrate on one muscle group can leave us asymmetrical- too many sit ups will shorten our abs, pulling our heads down, because we haven’t balanced this exercise with developing our back muscles.
i guess this is a long winded way of pointing out that the best way to correct posture is not just by telling ourselves to sit up straight. we need to relax over-tensed muscles, develop our bodies symmetrically, and help our bodies to do the right thing automatically. techniques like the alexander method are pretty good at this, and the best thing ive ever discovered on the subject is by a guy called Rob Brinded. he made a pretty interesting program designed to improve guys body language to make them more attractive, and i would highly recommend it. its called code of the natural.

]]> By: Jackhttp://artofmanliness.com/2009/06/21/30-days-to-a-better-man-day-22-improve-your-posture/#comment-33448 Jack Mon, 22 Jun 2009 17:22:41 +0000 http://artofmanliness.com/?p=3613#comment-33448 I've always struggled with posture. I would always end up in a lot of discomfort if not pain when practicing good posture. I have (had? It doesn't go away right?) a minor case of scoliosis, I wonder if that has something to do with it.For a while my mom (and I'm not even sure if this really works) used duct tape to try to force good posture on my by having me put my shoulders back and place a long horizontal piece of tape across my shoulders. Didn't work : / I’ve always struggled with posture. I would always end up in a lot of discomfort if not pain when practicing good posture. I have (had? It doesn’t go away right?) a minor case of scoliosis, I wonder if that has something to do with it.

For a while my mom (and I’m not even sure if this really works) used duct tape to try to force good posture on my by having me put my shoulders back and place a long horizontal piece of tape across my shoulders. Didn’t work : /

]]> By: Beat Attitudehttp://artofmanliness.com/2009/06/21/30-days-to-a-better-man-day-22-improve-your-posture/#comment-33443 Beat Attitude Mon, 22 Jun 2009 16:48:56 +0000 http://artofmanliness.com/?p=3613#comment-33443 suck it in, guys :) suck it in, guys :)

]]> By: Ianhttp://artofmanliness.com/2009/06/21/30-days-to-a-better-man-day-22-improve-your-posture/#comment-33403 Ian Mon, 22 Jun 2009 12:40:54 +0000 http://artofmanliness.com/?p=3613#comment-33403 It is always important when discussing posture that the point is to move better. Good posture is good movement. It is always important when discussing posture that the point is to move better. Good posture is good movement.

]]> By: ThomsonsPierhttp://artofmanliness.com/2009/06/21/30-days-to-a-better-man-day-22-improve-your-posture/#comment-33395 ThomsonsPier Mon, 22 Jun 2009 11:54:15 +0000 http://artofmanliness.com/?p=3613#comment-33395 Another benefit (hopefully not of use in the real world) is that correct posture enables you to hit harder. Martial arts practitioners spend a huge amount of time developing good posture to prevent energy from being wasted when performing a technique. Deviation from correct posture means that muscles which should be relaxed are instead employed to hold the body up; correcting this enables those muscles to contribute to a good, hard punch. Since I started studying martial arts five or so years ago, my posture has improved a hundred fold. I'm told that Pilates and yoga have a similar effect. Another benefit (hopefully not of use in the real world) is that correct posture enables you to hit harder. Martial arts practitioners spend a huge amount of time developing good posture to prevent energy from being wasted when performing a technique. Deviation from correct posture means that muscles which should be relaxed are instead employed to hold the body up; correcting this enables those muscles to contribute to a good, hard punch. Since I started studying martial arts five or so years ago, my posture has improved a hundred fold. I’m told that Pilates and yoga have a similar effect.

]]> By: Brianhttp://artofmanliness.com/2009/06/21/30-days-to-a-better-man-day-22-improve-your-posture/#comment-33391 Brian Mon, 22 Jun 2009 11:14:52 +0000 http://artofmanliness.com/?p=3613#comment-33391 A memorable posture book from an "expert" during the 1930's:http://www.sandowplus.co.uk/Competition/Rodrigues/cp01a.htmKeep following the "next page" link to see the entire book...This is found on one of my absolute favorite manly resources, "The Golden Age of Iron Men" - an incredible "online physical culture museum" displaying fitness from a bygone era; other free books found here:http://www.sandowplus.co.uk/Competition/compindex.htmEnjoy! A memorable posture book from an “expert” during the 1930’s:

http://www.sandowplus.co.uk/Competition/Rodrigues/cp01a.htm

Keep following the “next page” link to see the entire book…

This is found on one of my absolute favorite manly resources, “The Golden Age of Iron Men” – an incredible “online physical culture museum” displaying fitness from a bygone era; other free books found here:

http://www.sandowplus.co.uk/Competition/compindex.htm

Enjoy!

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