While at the gym, we are all about perfecting technique, maintaining proper posture and paying attention the minute details that enable us to perform better and have overall better mechanical efficiency. Can we say the same when we leave the gym? As soon as we step out of the gym, our shoulders round, we disengage our core, we have forward head posture and we completely forget everything we practiced during our reps and sets. We relax because we are not squatting with 200lbs on our back or pressing 95lbs over our heads.
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Although poor posture does not make us immediately susceptible to injury, these bad habits accumulate and can lead to chronic pain. Being hunched over at a desk 8 hours a day, 5 days a week will definitely add up after months or years if not immediately taken care of.
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Ever sit in a chair for too long and experience low back pain later? A possible cause is having tight psoas muscles (hip flexors). Your psoas attaches your legs to your spine and when contracted all day, i.e. being seated, the tissues tighten. Being seated disengages the core muscles in the back and potentially weakens them. This is just one example of several bad habits we might have. The take home message is to be conscious of how you move your body during the entire day, whether you are performing a one-rep max deadlift or lifting the groceries from the ground.
