Pilates Can Help Poor Posture

"A surprising number of people suffer from posture issues, whether it’s back pain from how they sit, slouching when they stand or walking around with their eyes cast to the ground rather than looking ahead. With our increasingly sedentary lifestyle, posture issues are not only getting more common – but harder to treat. Fortunately, a good Pilates instructor has the power to fix your posture. With the focused, versatile exercises of Pilates, you can retrain your body to stand up straight, helping relief back and spinal pain and giving you more confidence.

There are a number of factors that can cause bad posture. In some cases, posture issues are hereditary. Examples of this include spinal curvatures or uneven limbs. Muscle issues can also be another cause, whether hereditary or acquired. This can also result from poor or mismanaged fitness regimes causing certain muscle groups to be significantly stronger or more developed than others. Being overweight is a common cause of slouching and posture problems, as having a heavier midsection puts more pressure on your spin, and your skeletal system overall.

Beyond being constantly told to sit or stand up straight, there are some more serious consequences of having bad posture. One is that it’s a self-perpetuating problem. The longer you slouch for, the harder it is to fix, and the more the subconscious habit of slouching becomes ingrained. It can also lead to over-stressing your lower back, leading to chronic pain and degenerative issues in the joints and discs in your spine.

HOW DOES PILATES HELP?

The right Pilates instructor can do a lot for your posture. Pilates is all about efficiency and grace of movement and has a huge focus on core strength. Strengthening your core is a big step towards improving posture, in that it lessens the pressure on your shoulders, neck, and head when you stand up straight. If you’re a chronic sloucher, you probably feel this pressure when you stand up to your full height. The longer you work on your Pilates, and the better you get, the more improvement you’ll see in your posture as your core and overall strength gets better. Improving your posture will make you feel and look better, and will stave off a list of conditions later in life that can be extremely difficult to treat." _Sheppard Method Pilates

Come to the Civic Center at 467 Main St Wakefield, MA for Mat Pilates Thursdays at 6:30pm & Saturdays at 9:15am Beginners can start any time -Class size is limited - text 617-84-9451 or email bodybyconnie@gmail.com