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L. Shalini Bathija
P. Venkatakrishna

Is posture just the way we stand, sit and carry ourselves, or is there something more to it? It's all of those and more. Read on to find out.

Posture is a physical attitude we assume in our day-to-day life — at home, at work, during travel and even while we rest. Little do we realise that our daily, innocuous postures make a lot of difference to our well-being.

Is posture just the way we stand, sit and carry ourselves, or is there something more to it? To find out, all you need to make is a little conscious effort. The rest will be taken care of by your subconscious mind.

To begin with, each one of us has 206 bones and more than 600 muscles in our bodies. It is impossible for us to be conscious all the time about how best to maintain the right posture for each one of them. Only the subconscious mind can accomplish this difficult task. And for that to happen, we need to understand postures.

Postures fall mainly into two major types: Static and Dynamic. Static postures, or static loading, refer to holding the same posture or position throughout the exertion. Examples are gripping a tool, holding arms out or up, or standing in one place for a long period.

Dynamic postures form an efficient basis for movement. The pattern of the posture constantly changes, adjusting to the changing circumstances or movements. Examples are lifting objects, walking, running and so on.

Though there are a number of postures for a given situation, it is essential to know the right type for a given environment. For example, when sitting, it is necessary to sit erect and not slouch. Slouching puts undue stress on the body. To maintain a posture, the body uses the props of bones, muscles, ligaments, tendons, joints, the nervous system and so on.

There is a pattern to the interaction among these props — structures in themselves — and with respect to the force of gravity acting on the body. This determines the posture.

The structures form a "mechanism" controlled by the brain. For example, bones, muscles and other structures complement one another, and together form the musculoskeletal system. For a scientific understanding of its principle, the composite system can be explained in terms of a simple engineering principle:

Visualise a structure of struts, hinged end-to-end and supported by guy ropes. To make such a structure stable, the guy ropes have to be strong and carefully spaced out. The human body is similar to this structure, with bones in the place of struts and muscles for guy ropes. What happens to this framework during an incorrect posture or improper environment?

Harking back to the engineering structure, the muscles, or the guy ropes, in the human body are strung close together and hence susceptible to any postural mishaps. Incorrect postures result in high consumption of energy, causes rapid wear and tear of the structures, lowers concentration and ultimately, leads to decreased productivity. Thus a correct posture is required to prevent undue stress and strain on the body structures.

Postures cannot be corrected the way a car can be repaired. It is necessary to evolve simple principles that will help the body to naturally go back to its correct alignment. This may take time, but it can be done with some conscious effort.

When do you say a posture is correct? When it best suits the environment, the other aspect that we need to understand. The science that deals with the relationship of the human posture to its environment is called ergonomics. The term ergonomics is derived from two Greek words — ergon — meaning work, and — nomi — meaning natural laws. In recent years, ergonomists have tried to define postures that minimise unnecessary static work and reduce the force acting on the body. We can significantly reduce our risk of postural injury if we adhere to the following ergonomic principles:

All work activities should permit the worker to adopt several healthy and safe postures.

Where muscular force has to be exerted, it should be done by the largest muscle groups available.

Work activities should be performed with the joints at about midpoint of the range of movement. This applies particularly to the head, trunk and upper limbs.

Ergonomics is a vast subject. But there are simple, practical and innovative ways of dealing with our environment (for example, by giving a little care to the gadgets, tools, kitchen utensils, workstation designs, doors and lighting that we use everyday), which can go hand-in-hand with correct postures, paving the way for a better life. Ergonomics helps us to reach our goal of a healthy body efficiently and quickly. Would that not be the smart way to live?

(The authors are Chennai-based consultant Physiotherapists and can be contacted at shalini_physio@rediffmail.com or pvenkatpbt@rediff.com)

Picture by K. Ramesh Babu

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