All Posts tagged posture

The Power of Posture by Margo Burette

What do a toy poodle and the human head have in common? They both share an average weight of 10-12 pounds. Your spine has three natural shock-absorbing curves which attenuate the stress of bearing that load above your shoulders while you move through your day. With good posture and frequent position changes, most of us can bear that weight without difficulty.

However, the moment you drop your chin to read the latest blog update on your cell phone the balance changes completely. When your head inclines forward 60 degrees the force your neck is bearing is equivalent to exchanging that toy poodle for a Labrador retriever – 60 pounds of force (Hansraj, 2014)! Consider that the average person sustains this position for 2-4 hours a day while using their smart phone and the load quickly becomes overwhelming. This chronic fatigue to the muscles and structure of the neck can lead to debilitating injury.

Your neck will thank you for contacting Nick Rinard Physical Therapy to address your posture.

Let us help you get that heavy Labrador off your shoulders!

Hansraj, KK. “Assessment of stresses in the cervical spine caused by posture and position of the head.” Surgical Technology International. 2014, November; 25:277-9

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