Most people believe that "good posture" is the secret to avoiding pain and discomfort. But what if I told you this entire concept is a myth?
In fact, the obsession with posture might be causing more harm than good.
Let me explain why your best posture is actuallyā€¦your next one.
What is posture, really?
Posture is synoynmous with position at a particular moment. That's it.
And everyone seems to have clear ideas and confident claims about what constitudes "good" and "bad" posture (positions).
Yet, if we inpect this idea of "good" and "bad" just a little more closely, the entire concept crumbles under itself.
Think about it this way: any position you might consider "good" can quickly become "bad" and vise-versa.
And there's something particularly unsettling about this fact: assume any single posture for a sustained period, and eventually that posture will feel terrible.
Don't believe me?
Sit down in the comfiest chair in your house and set a timer for just 10-15 minutes.
Don't move and simply pay attention.
Notice the subtle discomfort that arises at the very absense of motion.
You've very likely adjusted your posture several times already while reading this.
If you think "good posture" is sitting upright (no chair support) with your chest out and shoulders back, try that instead - and see how long you last before breaking into discomfort.
Many of you probably won't need to run these experiments because you understand this to be self-evident.
And you also understand the importance of subtly adjusting your body's position to reamin comfortable.
Even when lying comfortably in bed - dead asleep - our body frequently makes minor, sometimes imperceivable adjustments to position.
And this is for good reason - motion is, quite literally, lotion to our joints, muscles, and connective tissues.
Without motion, we atrophy.
We see this clearly in patients who are bed-ridden post-surgery, who begin to atrophy muscle after just 24-48 hours of immobilization.
After just two weeks of immobilization, up to 20-25% of reductions in muscle mass have been observed.
So why are we so obsessed with posture alone?
This is a fool's errand.
By definition, no single posture can be best for anyone, at least not for long.
And you might be thinking..."Ben, doesn't research suggest otherwise?"
No!
And let me use an example to show you...
Have you ever heard of anterior pelvic tilt (APT)?
It's a position that looks like this:
It's basically just arching your lower back.
APT has been demonized as much or more than the appearance of rounded shoulders.
People all over the internet make videos - to this day - about how one can "fix" APT, making claims such as:
- APT causes low back pain
- APT implies you have tight hip flexors and weak glutes
- You'll get hurt if you don't fix APT
- And on...
What data do we have to support such claims?
Well, none of it supports any of the above statements, but here's what we seem to know about APT:
- Spinal curvature does not correlate with hip stiffness or ROM (https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/33636455/)
- APT does not cause tight hamstrings (https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/8710963/)
- APT does not cause weak abs (https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/2951745/)
- APT can't even be reliably identified (https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/19119397/)
- People with low back pain do not reliably show differences in lumbar curve compared to people without low back pain (https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/25012528/)
- Exercise cannot change APT (https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/32071772/)
The evidence we've collected thus far seems conclusive...
In favor of APT not being a problem (that we can reliably diagnose in the first place, much less treat and actually change even if it were).
Did I mention that there have been studies that report 85% of males and 75% of females have APT?
Why are we pathologizing normal human anatomy?
I'll answer this question briefly, then get back to the major takeaway here.
Pathologizing normal anatomy is a great business model. Here's how it works:
- Tell someone they have a problem that they didn't know they had.
- Fear-monger them into believing that if it isn't fixed, they'll have problems down the line.
- Show examples of past clients and how you've helped them feel better (the most reliable treatment for pain reduction is time, by the way).
- People purchase products to "fix" the postural problem.
I don't believe many content creators are aware of the unethical nature of such a business model - and I don't believe many content creators are intentionally malicious, either.
But this shit needs to stop.
So, what should we focus on instead? What's the solution?
If there is such a thing...we should instead be focussed on change in posture.
In other words: there's nothing to "fix" about your posture in the first place.
Because change in posture means change in distribution of stress.
Change is what we're after.
If you sit for long periods of time, inject short windows of standing.
If you stand for long periods, do the opposite. Animals do something similar with short-bursts of contraction - it's called pendiculation:
Image Source: Eric Cooper
If you constantly sit with slumped shoulders, occasionally pulling them backward and straightening your spine isn't a bad idea.
But pathologizing normal position is.
And the same applies to our exercise selection and execution in the gym.
Imagine you only did one triceps exercise for 10 sets per week.
Now imagine you did two triceps exercises, each for 5 sets per week.
Which do you intuitively think would be more sustainable?
Despite the fact that the differences between triceps exercises may appear minor, the net effect of subtle variation creates a vastly different distribution of stress over the long run.
Much in the same way that microadjustments to sitting and standing may not make a difference on the scale of a day, they may make all the difference over the course of a month, or even several days.
It's not the posture that's the problem or the solution.
It's the framework around such postures that is.
Your best posture is your next posture.
P.S - below I've posted a 30+ minute video on myth-busting posture, the research that surrounds it, and where all of this BS started to begin with. It's not available to the public.
If you want to view the lecture, you can start a 7-day free trial to the Modern Meathead Membership.
This is also a great way to support my content if you appreciate my work.