Photo taken by Linus Bohman on September 2, 2006

Based on articles from Men’s Health and a growing body of research, having a sit down job and sedentary lifestyle is being indicated in increased risk of heart disease, early death and issues with spine, shoulders, lower back and neck (in other words, with posture). While this new information isn’t a total surprise, what is the solution?

Everyone knows that ‘active living’ and regular exercise is a solution. But what is the definition of active living? If you work out daily but spend most of the remaining time sitting when instead you could be walking your dog, mowing the lawn or shoveling snow, then your lifestyle may not be active enough to eliminate health risks such as heart disease and lower back, neck and shoulder pain from your future.

Take a look at this excerpt from Men’s Health:

“This same effect can be seen in other areas of your body. For instance, if you spend a lot of time with your shoulders and upper back slumped over a keyboard, this eventually becomes your normal posture. "That's not just an issue in terms of how you look; it frequently leads to chronic neck and shoulder pain," says Hartman. Also, people who frequently cross their legs a certain way can experience hip imbalances. "This makes your entire lower body less stable, which decreases your agility and athletic performance and increases your risk for injuries," Hartman says. Add all this up, and a person who sits a lot is less efficient not only at exercising, but also at simply moving from, say, the couch to the refrigerator.

It gets worse. Weak glutes as well as tight hip flexors cause your pelvis to tilt forward. This puts stress on your lumbar spine, resulting in lower-back pain. It also pushes your belly out, which gives you a protruding gut even if you don't have an ounce of fat. "The changes to your muscles and posture from sitting are so small that you won't notice them at first. But as you reach your 30s, 40s, 50s, and beyond, they'll gradually become worse," says Hartman, "and a lot harder to fix."

My Fitness Solution
Ok so I didn’t think of this all on my own, but I do believe in it! Have you heard of the term 'functional fitness'? Maybe not, but perhaps you’ve seen me meticulously correcting the form and posture of my clients at the gym? No? While most onlookers probably consider me to be some kind of drill sergeant with a chip on her shoulder, the truth is that performing exercises that are ‘functional’ while using correct posture is a significant factors in achieving lasting, real-world fitness results.

The goal of this two-part article is to define neutral posture and functional training and inform you on how it can make you a better athlete, a safer senior citizen and a stronger home-maker.

What is neutral posture?
According to http://www.oehc.uchc.edu/ergo_neutralposture.asp, "Neutral Posture" refers to the resting position of each joint — the position in which there is the least tension or pressure on nerves, tendons, muscles and bones. It is also the position in which muscles are at their resting length — neither contracted nor stretched. Muscles at this length can develop maximum force most efficiently.

The neutral position requires you to keep shoulders under the ears, maintain the natural curve of the spine and a neutral pelvis. Most often, people tend to round out their upper back or rotate their pelvis back as they fatigue. Although being in this non-neutral position may help you complete the exercise, it can actually be detrimental to your body and can put you at risk for injury to either your back or shoulders. You'll need a good eye when looking for yourself to "lose position."

What does posture have to do with fitness results?
Understanding and utilizing the neutral posture during exercise and athletics gives you a lot of benefits. You’ll notice your effort to train from the neutral position transferring into reduced knee pain, improved balance, improved core strength and more. The following is a brief list of additional benefits you’ll experience, especially when you use this method long-term.

-develop balanced musculature
-prevent undue stress on joints
-improve performance
-use appropriate muscles during movement
-protect spine by developing supporting muscles
-allow lungs to draw in full capacity of breath
-reduced risk of injury
-alleviate or reduce lower back and neck pain

This has been a brief summary of what it takes to stay healthy and what everyday events might be in your the way of your fitness results. Based on the information I’ve compiled, I recommend use of functional movements in your fitness plan that includes training from the neutral posture. 

In addition to that, increasing daily activity levels by incorporating simple activities such as walking, standing and even sitting up straight can improve your health and make your overall active living plan more effective. In part two of this series, I will define the term functional training and explain how it applies to real world fitness results. If you are interested in learning more about functional fitness and understanding how to train with correct form and posture, email me at jes@jesreynolds.com and we can set up a personal training session.