Importance of posture and Spine Alignment

Energetically, life revolves around the spine. Our nervous system is the body’s information gatherer, storage center, and control system. Its function is to collect information about external conditions in relation to the body’s internal state. It then analyzes this information and initiates the proper response.

The Central Nervous System (CNS) includes the brain and spinal cord, which are contained inside the spinal column. The Peripheral Nervous System (PNS) connects the CNS to other parts of the body and is composed of nerves that emanate from the spinal column.

Your spine, or backbone, is your body's central support structure. It connects different parts of your musculoskeletal system. Your spine helps you sit, stand, walk, twist and bend.

 What are the spine segments?

The 33 vertebrae make up five distinct spine segments. Starting at the neck and going down toward your buttocks (rear end), these segments include:

• Cervical (neck): The top part of the spine has seven vertebrae (C1 to C7). These neck vertebrae allow you to turn, tilt and nod your head. The cervical spine makes an inward C-shape called a lordotic curve.
• Thoracic (middle back): The chest or thoracic part of the spine has 12 vertebrae (T1 to T12). Your ribs attach to the thoracic spine. This section of the spine bends out slightly to make a backward C-shape called the kyphotic curve.
• Lumbar (lower back): Five vertebrae (L1 to L5) make up the lower part of the spine. Your lumbar spine supports the upper parts of the spine. It connects to the pelvis and bears most of your body’s weight, as well as the stress of lifting and carrying items. Many back problems occur in the lumbar spine. The lumbar spine bends inward to create a C-shaped lordotic curve.
• Sacrum: This triangle-shaped bone connects to the hips. The five sacral vertebrae (S1 to S5) fuse as a baby develops in the womb, which means they do not move. The sacrum and hipbones form a ring called the pelvic girdle.
• Coccyx (tailbone): Four fused vertebrae make up this small piece of bone found at the bottom of the spine. Pelvic floor muscles and ligaments attach to the coccyx.

The skeletal alignment of our spine is the key determinant of our access to the body’s energetic resources. To unlock this energy we must balance the curves of the spine and lengthen them in two directions:

• The sacrum and tailbone move down
• The lumbar spine and everything above extend up.

 We need to understand how to lengthen the spine while maintaining all of its natural curves in order to achieve its maximum length.

In order to visualize a healthy lengthening of the spine, we need to understand the muscles that are involved in this action.  Your pelvic floor is a group of muscles called the levator ani, the elevator of the anus. Energetically this muscle moves upward into the core of the body.

Your buttocks muscle, the big gluteus maximus, is a muscle that wraps down the leg to extend it. Energetically it flows down to the earth. These muscles (levator ani & gluteus maximus) have specific functions that work in opposition to each other.

Unluckily, we tend to use both muscle groups poorly. This is because we tend to overuse the buttocks and underuse the pelvic floor. As a result, the spine can begin to suffer. Overuse of the buttocks, or gluteal muscles, tends to shut down energetic movement through the spine, while standing the gluteus maximus should not be working much. In walking it works a tiny bit to take the leg back unless you are walking uphill which is when it kicks into gear.

Unfortunately, our posture usually shifts the gluteus maximus into a different role. If your legs are underneath your pelvis, the butt can do less. In addition, your spine can do more.

If the thighs begin to sink forward and the pelvis tucks under, as they do in most people, the quadriceps (big thigh muscles) and the buttocks begin to work to provide stability. This false sense of stability results in the butt gripping and its energy moving upwards.

 Releasing the buttocks opens the possibility for one of the body’s most important features: toning the tail. Toning your pelvic floor creates the upward energy that allows for the sacrum and the tailbone to move down.

If the idea of toning your pelvic floor does not make sense, you can try to feel it in many ways.

Holding in your pee. Gently engaging between the anus and the genitals. Lastly, if all else falls squeeze the anus to get a sense of movement at the base of the pelvis.

Ideally, you will feel a shift in the bones as well as the muscles.

Your coccyx (tail) bone at the very base of the spine should move forward ever so slightly towards the pubis or front of the pelvis as the sacrum lengthens down.

To lengthen your spine up you can engage a gentle tone in the abdominals and lengthen up from the back of the neck. This pulls the spine up into its full extension at the top. Though the spine is moving in two directions to find its length, the muscular action is all about lifting or lengthening up. When the pelvic floor tones, the sacrum, and tailbone move down.

When the legs are under the hips correctly, the spine can lengthen up with the help of the erector spinae muscles in the back.

When our alignment is off so is the lengthening of our spine.

To be able to get full length and extension in our spine is one of the key aspects of aging successfully.

When the relationship between the buttocks and the pelvic floor is not harmonious, the spine will only lengthen in one direction.

How to keep the spine healthy?

Strong back muscles can protect your spine and prevent back problems. Try to do back-strengthening and stretching exercises at least twice a week. Exercises like planks strengthen the core (abdominal, side and back muscles) to give your spine more support. Other protective measures include:

• Bend your knees and keep your back straight when lifting items.
• Lose weight, if needed (excess weight strains your back).
• Maintain good posture.

 PHYSIOTHERAPY FOR SPINE ALIGNMENT

 Manual Therapy

Our physiotherapists have an emphasis on ‘hands on’ treatment combined with subsequent rehabilitation. If the spine is misaligned, a physiotherapist is likely to use a variety of ‘hands on’ techniques to correct the alignment and prevent recurrence. Other techniques may include mobilization, manipulation and muscle energy techniques.

Specific Exercises help improve posture

Exercises are usually essential to help you strengthen any weak muscles or stretch any tight muscles that are causing you to adopt a poor and maybe painful posture.  Exercises are given to loosen stiff joints, or provide more stability to those that are more mobile than they should be. Personal exercise programs will also help to maximize and prolong any benefits gained from the ‘hands on’ treatment.

Benefits of the regime

People are often unaware of any posture or alignment issues that they have. Optimum posture and alignment will help you to be more functional and biomechanically correct and reduce your pain levels.

Having postural alignment as part of your treatment can produce many benefits including:

• Reducing pain
• Stabilizing stretchy ligaments
• Stretching tight muscles
• Loosening and strengthening stiff joints
• Improving general posture awareness
• Improving function both at work and during sport
• Strengthening weak muscles

Our physical therapists will provide advice about correct sitting and standing positioning, moving and handling techniques that will help to improve your posture. The advice will be specific to you and therefore will consider your occupation, driving habits and other activities. This will allow you to implement our advice in your daily activities.