Waist matters & frustration - some venting

[OakLeaf]

The return of low rise jeans made me develop some better sitting habits, I can tell you that right now.

[NoNo]

Lift your boobs.
Pull in your lower belly.

If you get a belly sitting, but not standing, then you are very likely dropping into a slouch and turning off your lower abs as soon as you plop into a seat. The chest drops, the neck cranes forward, and the abdominal contents land in the lap. They have nowhere else to go but OUT when your ribcage slops down onto the abdominal cavity.

To let the guts out of the way, your body has to turn OFF the lower abs. It will be very hard to pull the lower abs back into work while the guts are flopped out and begging for mercy to get away from the ribcage. It's also very hard to breathe until the ribcage is back up. The body has a strategy of dumping the abdominal contents into your lap to make room in your squashed torso for your lungs to expand.

So, first lift the ribcage back into it's rightful place (lift the boobs), *then* pull the lower belly in.

Very, very interesting. Makes a lot of sense, too. Guess I have something to focus on. I suspect the men in my office will be happy with these changes.

[NbyNW]

Very, very interesting. Makes a lot of sense, too. Guess I have something to focus on. I suspect the men in my office will be happy with these changes.

What matters is YOUR happiness!

[marni]

Where did you hear this?

I'm sure you didn't mean to offend the pears among us, but IMHO, there are a lot of very intelligent pears posting on this forum.

FWIW, I'm neither a pear nor an apple. And I readily admit that "groups" claiming to more intelligent/better than other "groups" is a real hot button issue for me.

People come in all shapes and sizes, and let's face it, other people usually don't pay attention or even care about another person's shape. They are more interested in whether a person is kind, interesting to speak with, a good friend, etc.

to quote a Danish James Thurber type poet " you wouldn't worry what people think of you if you knew that they seldom do."

marni

[uk elephant]

thank you, Knot! I totally failed your little test, although I knew my core was in need of help anyway (combination of surgery and years of bad posture). Your description of bad posture sounds just like mine. I had better start doing something about it. Starting.....now! Puh, that's hard work! But how do you breathe and read papers and concentrate on work while also focusing on contracting stomach muscles and lifting boobs?

[Crankin]

I started thinking about posture a few weeks ago. I am a pear, and always have had a small waist, even when I was heavier.
But lately, my whole ab area (upper and lower) feels loose. I don't have a belly, but I just don't like the changes I feel. I am definitely in the bad posture category, so I am trying to be aware and pull those muscles in at all times. It's really hard! I tend to lock my knees, too. I notice that almost everyone around here does that.
Catrin, you know, I felt the same way about my rear end. After getting into shape, years ago, it's not huge anymore, but it's never going to be firm and toned, like my core. Well, maybe with lots of squats and lunges, but I am not willing to do that. I am in proportion, and accept the fact that it's my weak spot.
Yea, if I had even average sized boobs, I wouldn't look so pear-ish.

[ny biker]

I started thinking about posture a few weeks ago. I am a pear, and always have had a small waist, even when I was heavier.
But lately, my whole ab area (upper and lower) feels loose. I don't have a belly, but I just don't like the changes I feel. I am definitely in the bad posture category, so I am trying to be aware and pull those muscles in at all times. It's really hard! I tend to lock my knees, too. I notice that almost everyone around here does that.
Catrin, you know, I felt the same way about my rear end. After getting into shape, years ago, it's not huge anymore, but it's never going to be firm and toned, like my core. Well, maybe with lots of squats and lunges, but I am not willing to do that. I am in proportion, and accept the fact that it's my weak spot.
Yea, if I had even average sized boobs, I wouldn't look so pear-ish.

I fake an hourglass figure by having broad shoulders.

[NoNo]

So yesterday I tried keeping good posture the entire day at work. I seriously never have to leave my desk, so there's tons of potential for bad posture. By 1:30 I was tired. It was hard to stay upright! I wanted to lean or slouch or hunch so badly. By 4:30 I was glad to be heading home, where I knew I'd be on my feet most of the night.

But there was a problem: I'd started to get a headache just before I left work. Then I got home and it got a little worse. By the time I was done working around the house around 9, it was a pretty bad headache. Not my normal headache which starts in my neck, but my skull was locked up. I fell asleep watching tv, which normally helps. Nope, pain was still there. I staggered to bed and spent a fitful few hours trying to sleep through the shooting pain in my skull. At 4AM I couldn't take it any more and popped some Excedrin. It took a while, but the pain finally subsided. My question: Could the headache be related to the effort of keeping upright all day? Like I was using new muscles and they cramped up? I very rarely get a headache where my skull locks like that, so I thought there might be a correlation.

[NbyNW]

My question: Could the headache be related to the effort of keeping upright all day? Like I was using new muscles and they cramped up? I very rarely get a headache where my skull locks like that, so I thought there might be a correlation.

Could be. When I get a tension headache, it's VERY painful, and there are muscles in my neck and shoulder that tend to be tight as well. I have a muscle relaxant that I take before bed when I get to one of these, but if it's the middle of the day and I don't want to sleep, or if I don't have access to my medication, I work on trigger points in my neck, shoulder and face and it helps relieve the worst of the pain.

In Pilates we work a lot at keeping shoulders relaxed and neutral. In a lot of the exercises there can be a tendency to shrug the shoulders, or in my case, hyperextend them. It's another body awareness thing to develop.

How is your desk at work set up? Is the height of your chair appropriate to your desktop/keyboard? What about your monitor? Do you need a footrest? All of these things should be positioned to promote good posture. There's probably a good diagram of this floating around on the internet somewhere.

[NoNo]

How is your desk at work set up? Is the height of your chair appropriate to your desktop/keyboard? What about your monitor? Do you need a footrest? All of these things should be positioned to promote good posture. There's probably a good diagram of this floating around on the internet somewhere.

Oh, it's set up properly. We even had a guy come a few years back to assess us and find chairs that worked for us. So I have a nice chair, a foot rest, and my keyboard and mouse are on one of those adjustable tray things. Doesn't mean my body likes being "ergonomically correct".

[tulip]

NoNo, just because you don't have to leave your desk doesn't mean you shouldn't leave your desk--you should! Get up every hour, walk around, have a glass of water. That and what NbyNW said. You are young, and you have the opportunity to change your habits so you won't end up with chronic back pain down the road.

I learned from my dog trainer, of all people, to walk and sit and stand like a dancer or like Queen Elizabeth. I put that in my head, and it's slowly becoming a good habit. Driving is the hardest for me--Queen Elizabeth didn't drive! Luckily I don't have to drive often--once a week or so to the grocery store. But once a month I have to take long driving trips for work. I really have to focus, and I also get out of the car every 2 hours. Otherwise my hip complains loudly!

Pilates really helps with butts, too. If you want a nice butt, do Pilates. Done right, it really helps with just about everything, particularly if you take what you learn in the class and apply it to your being everyday and everywhere.

[NbyNW]

I learned from my dog trainer, of all people, to walk and sit and stand like a dancer or like Queen Elizabeth. I put that in my head, and it's slowly becoming a good habit. Driving is the hardest for me--Queen Elizabeth didn't drive! Luckily I don't have to drive often--once a week or so to the grocery store.

A friend of mine lives in Windsor and says Elizabeth II can be seen driving around town. And SHE drives, she is not being driven!

I probably spend at least an hour in my car every day since moving up to Edmonton. I do try to use the time to check my posture. One of my problems that I've been working on in Pilates is that I tuck my pelvis too much, so if I'm at a long stop light, I'll check -- is my pelvis neutral? Shoulders and neck relaxed, etc.?

Maybe I'll pretend I'm the Queen when I'm out running my errands this afternoon.

[Biciclista]

a non-exercise related aside; I went on an ayurvedic diet last winter. She made me cook all my vegetables, no raw veggies all winter. My abdomen slimmed down! I did not lose a pound... NExt time you eat a big salad, check it out! I have noticed bloating depending on what I eat.

[Laterider21958]

Just purchased a Pilates exercise book and am wondering if there are any exercises that should be avoided or modified for a person who last year fractured T7 and T8 vertebrae. Pinching a nerve is very, very painful and I wish to avoid this. I would say that my core muscles have been on "holiday" for most of my 51 years. I'm trying to retrain my posture however old habits die hard and I keep forgetting. Can Pilates help pelvic floor sag? (Dr. suggested that it would probably need to be "fixed" via surgery in the future - no mention of other ways to correct the problem.)

[NbyNW]

Laterider,

I think when you have an injury like yours it's a good idea to find an instructor who can work with you one-on-one. They'll be able to show you how to adapt exercises so as to avoid aggravating your injury and start building towards being able to do the exercises that are probably in your book.

There are a lot of Pilates teacher training programs out there. You'll want to look for a teacher who has had 600+ hours of training, and if you can, someone who has experience with your type of injury.

I have a bias for classical Pilates. As I understand it, there are also "modern" Pilates programs that are very good as well, but I don't have any experience with them. The classical repertoire has served me well. I am going on 4 years since I fractured my S1-S2.

You can find a lot of classical Pilates instructors here

or otherwise ask around in studios in your area. You should be able to find out what kind of training the teachers have done, how much experience they have, whether they have experience or interest in working with your injury. You may even find someone with a PT background, which would probably be ideal.

And short of that, I've found the Pilates Connections forum to be a good place to look for information. You might try posting your questions about modifications for your injury and pelvic floor sag there. But keep in mind you can only learn so much from reading a book or looking at a forum, and at some point it really helps to have an experienced person show you how to do the exercises with the proper form.