Are you sitting comfortably? Why a Personal Trainer should be analysing and correcting client posture

As a child many of us 50 somethings would have been told to 'sit up straight' and 'stop slouching', and this is before the dawn of hours and hours in front of screens. Currently the the average user in the UK spends 3 hours on a mobile device and just over 3 hours on their laptop, desktop or tablet. Throw into the mix a sedentary lifestyle, thirty per cent of adults in the UK are sedentary for at least six hours/day during the week, which rises to 37% on the weekend, aiming to sit up straight can become a tricky task!

Therefore, when either employing the services of a Personal Trainer or studying how to become a Personal Trainer, posture analysis should always form part of the initial client consultation.

Good Posture

Personal Trainers will use the initial client consultation to find out a clients goals, current fitness levels and health status, barriers to exercise, likes and dislikes before creating a a programme to help them achieve their goals.

During the client consultation it is essential that a postural analysis is performed to identify if there are any areas that need to be worked on alongside the chosen client goals. Ignoring any potential areas that can be improved within a clients posture, will hinder a clients success.

What should Personal Trainers know in relation to posture?

#1 - The body continually adapts to the demands placed on it (good and bad)

The human body will naturally adapt its posture to any demands placed on it, in the both the short and long term. This can include occupational stresses, body weight, lifestyle, activity (or lack of) habits, injury and degenerative diseases.

#2 - Our muscles are thought to have an optimal length-tension relationship

This basically means muscles that are the optimal length will produce the most force. For example your posture has altered due to sitting a desk for prolonged periods of time, (you now have over stretched upper back muscles and shortened chest muscles - kyphosis) this will need to be addressed as the muscles involved will not optimally perform

Posture : How we hold our bodies as well as the overall physical form of an individual

#3 - A Personal Trainer will identify common postural distortions

The 3 common postural distortions are referred to as:

1. Kyphosis (forward poking head, rounded and elevated shoulders)

2. Lordosis (over arch of the lower back)

3. Scoliosis (excessive lateral curve of the spine)

The most prevalent postural distortion is kyphosis, which is closely associated with prolonged screen time and sitting for extended periods.

#4 - Work on stretching and strengthen the correct muscles for optimal posture (alongside your original goals)

Your Personal Trainer will work with you to correct your posture as this will also enhance any other goals you wish to achieve.

An example would be if you are kyphotic your chest muscles will have shortened and your back muscles lengthened therefore, additional work will be needed to stretch the chest muscles and strengthen the back muscles to optimise your posture

Personal Training is not complete without considering posture in evaluating a client's objectives!

Take a moment now to study your posture........sitting 'up straight' for the next 5 mins will not make a huge difference to bad posture however, acknowledging it and seeking advice (which muscles to stretch and which muscles to strengthen), will propel you faster towards your fitness goals.