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Bad posture is something that we can work on in Pilates. Bad posture comes with bad habits that your body has got used to and can be because of your job, weakness in certain areas and tightness in others. Two typical posture problems are Lordosis and Kyphosis. We'll look at both in detail
Lordosis is where the lower back has an excessive curvature. With an extreme curve, the lower spine will have a deep curve, causing the abdomen (stomach area) to stick out and causing the pelvis (hip areas) to curve back and up. One cause of Lordosis can be bad posture, which we can thankfully do something about.
Lordosis will cause the hip flexors (a group of muscles at the top of the upper thighs) to be tight and possibly the adductors (inner thigh muscles) too. The rectus abdominus (abdominal muscles, known as the six pack) would be weak and the gluteals (butt) would also be weak with poor tone.
f the posture type is severe then there may be a possibility that the hamstrings would take over the work of the glutes, causing them to also be tight.
What Can You Do?
A balance of stretching and strengthening exercises are needed as well as a strong focus on mobility of the spine. When you come to class I can show you some of the stretches and exercises like the ones below.
Stretches
Hip flexor stretch
Adductor stretches
Hamstring stretches
Pilates Exercises
Roll Down - Spinal mobility
Roll Up - For abdominal and back strength
Shoulder Bridge - Posterior pelvic tilting and glute strength
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