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February 2006 Newsletter "Never discourage anyone...who continually makes progress, no matter how slow." Plato (427 BC - 347 BC) Pursuing Perfect Posture There are few examples today of perfect posture. Visit any clothing store and there you will see mannequins with necks and heads protruding forwards, modeled on the posturally imperfect public they are displaying the latest fashions for. You cannot even find postural perfection in the bodies of the models that the media declare are beautiful. They walk seductively with what is known in the physical therapy circles as a Trendelenburg - where girls waddle their hips from side to side. If the waddle carries on into adulthood, the buttock muscles work in a dysfunctional way and the hip joints become unstable. So, who can you look to when at least 95% of adults have some degree of postural imbalance in their skeletons and muscles? 
The only place to look is back to the cradle or to cultures untouched by the western world, of which, sadly, there are few. When a baby is born free of structural defects and has mastered walking without baby reins, you will be able to see perfect posture in action, just like in the picture of the boy in blue opposite. Give the baby a chair and computer like the man pictured below, and several years later you'll see him developing forward head posture where the head and neck protrude forwards, just like it does with mannequins. This man may experience low back pain, hip pain, shoulder pain, knee pain, ankle pain and many other discomforts including poor breathing and low energy as a result of the way he habitually sits at work. 
Poor Posture Equals Pain Even just a forward head posture can contribute to neck and upper back pain, and can also cause the spinal curvatures to change in the lumbar or lower region of your spine. This also changes the angle your pelvis tilts at, leading to increased back pain and stability problems with your hips, knees and ankles. Why? Simply because, generally speaking, your muscles are pulled too tight, others become too loose, and some take over and do too much work, all of which pull your joints out of alignment. Most people are walking around with joints out of optimal alignment, seriously predisposing them to a greater risk of injury and increased recovery time. This can happen doing something as mundane as lifting a heavy box overhead onto a shelf, or picking up a weighty laundry basket. It is also why no matter how many times you go back to the chiropractor or osteopath, the joint just seems to keep coming out of alignment, causing you pain. Solving The Riddle To correct your posture, you need a personalized postural assessment. This is a service that we provide for every single exercise client at Total Fitness. It's also part of what makes us among the most effective fitness professionals in the world. Most fitness trainers give every body the same exercise program - but your body is unique to you. Failure to assess posture before writing an exercise program may result not only in failure to alleviate pain but also failure to produce the aesthetic results everybody wants - flat abdominals and a slim look. To truly correct your posture, you need to identify exactly which muscles are tight and then stretch them, strengthen the looser ones and retrain those that are too busy, as well as the ones that have become lazy. Most importantly, you also need to do your best to retrain your posture during your everyday activities. If you sleep, stand and sit poorly 165 hours a week and exercise well for 3 hours a week, the gains will be long and slow. If is often worth reminding your body how to walk properly again, just as it did hopefully when you were a small child. This can be done by asking us to do an ergonomic assessment of how you sit in your home or office, and by attending our yoga classes, where you will learn to sit, stand and move with greater awareness and alignment. We encourage many of our clients to visit a chiropractor to have their atlas adjusted. But if you continue to experience discomfort despite years of chiropractic, you may need our Total Fitness solution. This may include a personalized posture assessment, a corrective exercise program to improve your posture and maybe even an ergonomic assessment to improve the way you sit, stand or move at your job. Does this work? Our very own Catherine Carrigan grew 1 ½ inches taller at the age of 37 as a result of doing posture exercises. Numerous clients tell us that even their chiropractors are impressed with the scientifically measurable improvement as a result of a Total Fitness exercise program. Do It Yourself Posture Measuring Basics So, what can you do to examine your own posture at home? The simplest thing is to photograph your own posture and then analyze it with the help of a plumb line. It is simple to do and here's what you need:
Here's how you set it up:
Now your plumb line is set up, get your camera and set the tripod to the correct height so you can see the whole of the door frame in the camera's eye piece or screen. If your tripod has level gauges, ensure they are properly aligned so the air bubble is in the middle of the glass window as in the picture opposite. Now that you know your camera is aligned, set the timer so you can get in position. You'll need about 10-15 seconds. Key Points To Remember Always stand with the plumb line hanging immediately in front of your ankle bone. You will need to be about an inch away from the string. To get the most benefit, take the photographs of you in your underwear, or be naked! Go on, be brave. The reason for wearing as little clothing as possible is that you can see much more clearly what is going on. You will need to be:
Do not touch the plumb line. If you do, ensure it is still before you take any more photographs. Stand as you would with both feet on the ground (remove your shoes) and with your hands at the side of your upper legs. Do not stand to attention! Stand as you would normally as if you were talking with someone in a relaxed way. If you're in any doubt about whether you're standing as you normally do, wait a few minutes - your muscles will guide you into position. What will the photographs show me? Here are four photographs, cropped to show some of the key points to look for, thanks to Lee Townsend for her permission to use these pictures. See what you can notice.     When people are clothed, brightly colored dots can be placed on certain body points to compare how the person is aligned. You do not have to do this if you are wearing minimal clothing unless you are having difficulty finding the body points listed below. Usually a professional will tie in what they see in your photographs with muscle length tests so they have a fuller picture of exactly why you are experiencing pain or have poor posture.
Remember that the ankle is closest to the ground and is the most accurate place from which to compare all the other structures of the body. You will know you are in perfect alignment in a side view photograph because the plumb line hangs:
When looking at the back and front of the body, in good posture the plumb line hangs:
If your photographs reveal any deviations from the above body points, then you have a postural imbalance that needs stretching, strengthening and postural reeducation. If you ignore these issues, you put yourself at risk for hip problems, spinal fusions, knee surgery and huge medical expenses, as well as LOTS OF PAIN. All you have to do is start by having a thorough evaluation, here with us at Total Fitness. Why keep paying to be popped back into place when you can stop these challenges for good? Book Review: The Missing Books are like other forms of energy - they need to be passed on to somebody else to enjoy by giving, selling or lending them. There are some exceptions though, and The Missing Piece Peace In Your Life! is one book that I shall definitely be adding to my "must keep" collection. In this quick and easy-to-read guide to the mind, Rob Williams uses clear and simple language to explain the profound influence your subconscious has on your life. Whenever we are exposed to circumstances where fear is present, Williams says our subconscious soaks up the experience like a sponge. These might be messages such as "you're stupid," from our parents or teachers, or being told to be "wary of terror" on a daily basis by the television, internet and print media. When these messages, or "programs," as Williams calls them are repeated enough, the subconscious actually believes them. During our childhood, we collect lots of negative and unhelpful programs, and these can wreak havoc in our life because they form our attitudes, values and beliefs. Together, they cause us to act in specific ways which, when repeated often enough, we sometimes call habits. These operate below the radar of the conscious mind and so we are often unaware of how they affect us. For many people, these hidden programs can explain why some parts of their life are going well, why others are in not, and why we commit acts of self sabotage. If you understand the concepts in this book and are a parent or teacher, you will certainly understand why the way you speak to children can have a huge impact on their behaviour, outlook on life and their future. Another aim of the The Missing Piece Peace In Your Life is to introduce you to Williams' solution to correcting these out-of-date and unhelpful programs. As a psychotherapist who was dissatisfied with the tools he was trained in, Williams decided there needed to a more effective solution to helping his clients resolve their long-standing emotional issues. During a moment of frustration, Williams was inspired to write down the basic components of PSYCH-K, a form of kinesiology he created. Join us this March as Rob Williams speaks on Total Fitness radio and learn more about how you can change your life with kinesiology. Tune in to Total Fitness radio show this March for our very exciting guests: Mar 3 - Find out how you can improve your eyesight naturally with Meir Schneider. There is another solution to glasses, contact lenses and laser eye surgery. Learn from the inspiring Meir Schneider, born blind in Russia and now the holder of a totally unrestricted California driver's license. Discover the power of natural vision improvement techniques and how they can improve your sight. Mar 10 - Free Yourself From The Prison Of Limiting Beliefs: PSYCH-K with Rob M. Williams. You are largely the product of your parents, teachers, peers and the media. These all influence your sub-conscious mind, the powerhouse that stores your beliefs and controls your physical, mental and emotional health. Join Rob Williams, creator of PSYCH-K to find out how you can remove the outdated programs that cause you to act in self-sabotaging ways. Be prepared to experience a profound impact on your health, career, self-image, relationships and prosperity. Mar 17 - How To Make A Good Brain GREAT with Dr. Daniel Amen. Do you take your brain for granted? When was the last time that you sat down and wondered what it actually needs to keep you healthy and happy? Dr. Daniel Amen, M.D., will explain how your brain is tied into all aspect of your health and will share astonishingly simple and fun ways to boost your brain power for life. A fading memory, forgetfulness, poor coordination and brain fog can all be resolved by remembering to listen to this show. Mar 24 - Eat Like A Goddess with Catherine and James. Have you ever wondered what it would be like to eat like Cleopatra? Or possess the beautiful body of Aphrodite? We'll show you how as a female, your body loves to be pampered with food and has different needs compared with the male body. We'll explain how you can reveal your hidden beauty and learn the secrets of achieving and maintaining a beautiful physique through your food. Yoga Classes: Every Tuesday and Thursday, 7:30 p.m. Holy Spirit Catholic Church, 4465 Northside Drive, Atlanta, GA. $15 per class or $65 per calendar month. Qi Gong Class: Every Wednesday, 5:30 p.m. 1951 Northside Dr, Atlanta, GA. $15 per class. Booking Appointments With
Total Fitness To schedule an appointment to find out about a personalized fitness, nutrition or healing program that will help you get results, please contact us at: Nina Lynn: Nina@TotalFitness.net Catherine Carrigan: Catherine@TotalFitness.net James Williams: James@TotalFitness.net |
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