Backbone & Good Posture

Moms always said, “Stand up straight.” Dads say, “Have a backbone.”

In my case, my father also says, “DKB – Dad Knows Best,” and he was right.

I’ve learned quite a bit about having a healthy backbone and exercising good posture over the last two years. Just because you can stand and walk doesn’t mean either are optimal. When you hobble like an ol’ lady due to back pain, you realize the intricacies and importance of what you long took for granted.

In real life, I’ve learned from physical therapists, chiropractors and my dentist.

In the context of one’s career, a healthy and erect spine matters. No, this isn’t an article about ergonomics. Hint: It’s self-leadership.

Brace and Build Your Backbone

What won’t you compromise on? What makes you tick? What values run your mind, touch your heart and power your feet? While spines appear rigid, they have a natural curve and need strong surrounding muscles. Know where you’ll flex and where you won’t. Challenge yourself to stretch, and resist the urge to remain still for too long. Recognize where you lock up and when you need to decompress. Center your weight; don’t throw it around. Proper mechanics enable longevity. A strong backbone is active. It exposes itself to new challenges and embraces motion. This combination provides enduring strength and confidence.

Proper Posture

With core strength solidified (or at the very least under development,) consider how you walk into a room. Shoulders wide and relaxed. Your head and neck in a neutral position, fighting the urge to crane forward – consciously or unconsciously shrinking oneself. Level-headed in appearance and thought. Pulled up like an imaginary marionette, stretching the mind without an ego. Using wide-angle vision, with a head on smooth swivel.

A series of small, overlooked muscles drive healthy alignment. If the head is poorly aligned, the rest of the body feels the impact. Thus, these muscles merit retraining and maintenance. Rope-like coils running down the neck need to be strong-enough without becoming overtly tense and defensive. Just as massage can relieve physical tension, we must find similar coping mechanisms. The alternative risks injuring surrounding structures and slipping into an undue hunch.

When Combined

A healthy backbone and balanced posture lead to personal alignment that can be observed by others. A firm structure that is agile enough to meet the demands and weight of work is the result. Self-awareness changes how we walk and present ourselves. With broad shoulders, more can be carried. A “t-shaped career” could be the result, namely a depth of expertise utilized across a broader domain. With the ability to flex and look side-to-side, one can stay centered, grounded and ready.  

Advice to Ignore

Strengthening my back and refining my posture have revealed a few pieces of advice to ignore:

1. Despite popular preaching endorsing “leaning in,” inclining one’s ear, eye and mind does not necessitate curving the neck or angling the back. Engagement can be articulated through body language without poor ergonomics.

2. Consistently looking down is easily identified as poor posture and subpar for work and relationships. Do we aim to look straight ahead? Actually, no. Looking slightly up is best for our necks. It serves us well as we set goals and strategies.

3. Sucking in one’s stomach has long been considered a way to support and brace an aggravated spine. This advice, however, is being replaced with renewed guidance. Reacting as if you’re about to be tickled or as if a balloon is inflating 360° in your abdomen strengthens the core and builds protective muscles. When we summon the strength in us and take up space without shrinking inward, we position ourselves for success when facing difficulties.    

4. Listen to your body. Talk is cheap, advice often conflicting and only you know what feels right. Listen to your intuition. Try and experiment. Focus on a few key actions rather than attempting to “do it all” all of the time.        

To the Point

Invest in yourself. Don’t overlook the “basics;” instead, build on them. Walk on!    

Image source: Daily Burn