Postural awareness — our relationship with our body and back pain
“Upright posture has been by will made a habit — a position taken without adjustment and without consciousness — which continues to be an affair of his [the human’s] persistent will.”
Friedrich Hegel in Philosophy of Mind (1830)
Posture is the way you hold your body, and it can be performed either consciously or unconsciously.
There are two types of postures:
- Dynamic, when moving (walking, running, or lifting)
- Static, when not moving(standing, sitting, or sleeping)
Having a constant good posture across all the activities that you perform throughout your life will improve your health and make you more aware and skillful at them.
Therefore it’s critical to understand the nature of posture. This article aims to offer a brief overview of what posture awareness is, wonder why back pain is so pervasive nowadays, and share with you some resources to eliminate it.
Postural awareness
When contrasting the main differences between humans and other animals, two characteristics distinguish us the most: our capacity to think and our upright posture.
An upright posture is to humans as water is to life, an essential element of the human condition.
Arguments come in many forms, one example is poet John Milton’s idea that upright posture precedes intelligence, another one is Ralph Waldo Emmerson’s assertion that a man who looks for power: “instantly, rights himself up and stands in an erect position”, and how about the Yogui tradition of Karma Yoga? They have created a whole science encompassing body awareness as a critical factor for mindfulness.
It’s clear that posture is essential in our lives, but what exactly is postural awareness?
In short: it is the capability to understand the patterns of our body movements and is part of the framework of mind-body integration.
We know from the diverse scientific literature that there is a strong relationship between posture and the psychological dimensions, as demonstrated in several studies concerning assertiveness levels and action trends.
Some significant benefits that arise from good posture include increased energy flow through the body, improved oxygenation, and reduced pressures on the intervertebral discs.
Additionally, one particular study from 2018 concluded that postural awareness can be used to reduce back pain, a condition, which experts estimate will affect 50–80% of the population at some time in their lives.
So… what’s up with the back pain?
The main risk factors are the following:
- Age: For most people with back pain, it occurs between the age of 30–50, and it becomes more common with advancing age.
- Fitness Level: Back pain is more common among people who are not physically fit. Weak back and abdominal muscles may not properly support the spine. “Weekend warriors” — people who go out and exercise a lot after being inactive all week — are more likely to suffer painful back injuries than people who make moderate physical activity a daily habit.
- Weight gain: Being overweight, obese, or quickly gaining significant amounts of weight can put stress on the back and lead to low back pain.
- Genetics: Some causes of back pain, such as ankylosing spondylitis (a form of arthritis that involves fusion of the spinal joints leading to some immobility of the spine), have a genetic component.
- Job-related factors: Having a job that requires heavy lifting, pushing, or pulling, particularly when it involves twisting or vibrating the spine, can lead to injury and back pain. Working at a desk all day can contribute to pain, especially from poor posture or sitting in a chair with not enough back support.
- Mental health: Anxiety and depression can influence how closely one focuses on their pain as well as their perception of its severity. Pain that becomes chronic also can contribute to the development of such psychological factors. Stress can affect the body in numerous ways, including causing muscle tension.
- Smoking: It can restrict blood flow and oxygen to the discs, causing them to degenerate faster.
- Backpack overload in children: A backpack overloaded with schoolbooks and supplies can strain the back and cause muscle fatigue.
- Psychological factors: Mood and depression, stress, and psychological well-being also can influence the likelihood of experiencing back pain.
Basically, pretty much everything can cause back pain… but by being aware of our posture ALWAYS. We can achieve a considerable reduction of the pain’s severity sensation.
An excellent way to start building posture awareness and decreasing back pain is by hearing some of the tips from experts of diverse disciplines:
Jeff Cavaliere from Athlean X has a couple of videos on obtaining the best posture and getting rid of back pain, and his videos worked like magic.
On the other hand, Sadhguru’s Yogui guide for life is perplexing, and it also offers some fantastic tips on reducing back pain:
Finally, another technique could be Rolfing which is recommended by Joe Rogan.
Hopefully, after this article, you’ll be more aware of your posture and make it the beginning of a life full of awareness.
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