When Good Posture Is Not So Good For Your Body
When “good posture” is not so good for your body
BY OLGA KABEL
Spinal curves are very important and we have them for a reason – they help us distribute the weight of the heavier parts of the body within gravitational pull. The cervical curve is necessary to support the weight of the head; thoracic spine balances out the weight of the rib cage and the head above it, and the lumbar spine negotiates the relationship between the pelvis and all the structures above it. We need all three curves, although the degree of the curvature varies from person to person and is mostly congenital (with some acquired modifications). We need those curves, yet for some reason we are intent on getting rid of them. We do a lot of shoulder stands and begin to lose the cervical curve; we try to avoid “slouching”, assume a military posture and begin to lose the thoracic curve; we sit a lot and tuck the tailbone under habitually and begin to lose the lumbar curve.