Posture!

Stand up straight! Pull your belly in! Roll your shoulders back! Head up!!

Sound familiar?

Some of my clients refer to me as a 'form nazi'. I'm sure many people think that way about their personal trainers.

I would agree that I hear myself giving ques for posture very, very often throughout a training session, and demanding that an exercise be done right before a client stops. But, the reason I do this is to ensure efficient movement by ending with positive feedback when an exercise is done correctly, so as to encourage the client to learn the proper form and to translate that into their activities of daily living.

If bad posture is evident in a client, most of the time it is the result of an imbalance in the stability/flexibility relationship of the body. Adding the stress and load of cardio and resistance training on top of an imbalanced body can exacerbate muscular deviations causing pain or even injury.

Think of lower back pain, Plantar Faciitis, IT band Syndrome, or rotator cuff injures. These are pretty common injures, especially among athletes, and can be corrected by using proper form and mechanics. Gone untreated or ignored, these injures can side line a person for months, the end result, many times, is surgical intervention...which is no fun...

So, the next time you think dark thoughts about your pt because they won't leave your posture alone, thank them instead, because their objective is a healthier you.

Namaste and STAND UP STRAIGHT!!

Jennie