3 Bad Habits That May Be Affecting Your Posture

Has anyone ever mentioned to you need to stand up straight or to stick out your chest? Sometimes these kinds of things go unnoticed because you don’t realize what you’re doing during your day is affecting your posture. As time passes, your lower back becomes weaker and your shoulders more rounded. It is never too late to work on your posture, here are some bad habits to avoid that may be affecting your posture.

Slouching while sitting

Whether you’re tired or feel like just relaxing, slouching is a very bad habit. This can occur while sitting on the couch watching TV, during class, or at work. You are only hurting your back as you’re tightening your muscles and making your back get used to being in that position.
When sitting down at work or at home, no matter how tired you are feeling, make an effort to sit straight, so that your bottom is touching the back of the seat and you’re not being supported by your upper back.

Hand on hip

A common position for people tired of standing can be placing a hand on a hip as to hold oneself. Although this takes a load off your back, it is actually possible to create muscle imbalances around the pelvis area. Other causes of muscle imbalances around the pelvis area can be carrying a backpack on one shoulder.
When it comes to standing, try to avoid these positions and try to stand straight by supporting yourself completely on both legs.

Texting hunched over

One of the growing causes of bad posture is texting. You may not notice it, but texting or using your phone is probably causing your bad posture if you’re frequently leaning your neck towards your phone. Being in this position is weakening your upper back and tightening your chest which can lead to a rounded upper back.
In order to fix this problem, do pulls up and seated rows, as well as practice using your phone in a non-hunched position.