We’ve all been told at some point in our lives “Sit up straight and stop slouching!” Waking up in the morning after a weekend of binge watching Netflix you get up to go to the washroom out of necessity and can barely straighten your back without grunting, moaning or calling your mom to make you homemade soup because you threw your back out. We’ve heard the phrase “Text Neck” and how all the sitting, texting and computer work we do is destroying our spines and affecting your posture. We need to start checking ourselves before we wreck ourselves!

There are a lot of “posture correctors” out there with the intention of helping people pull their shoulders back and sit up straighter. Even though I would rather someone do something versus nothing, most of these devices are only passively putting our bodies into a position it deems acceptable with no awareness of where we actually should be. Chairs with lumbar supports, straps we wear over our shoulders or a device that buzzes when we slouch to remind us to pull our shoulders back. What we need is to actively train the right muscles to do that work. As soon as we take those support systems away, our body will almost always revert back to where it was, not knowing how to support itself on its own.

I know you don’t like to hear it, but you have to put the work in if you’re going to fix years of bad posture and create lasting change. You don’t have to live with pain and it’s sad to hear how many people feel like they have to. I’ve trained hundreds of people over my career, mostly in the 50+ age range, and when I see someone walk in that is 50 years old but looks and moves like they are in their

80’s it breaks my heart. This won’t be something we fix overnight but if they are willing to put in consistent work, you can slowly make progress fixing your posture, eventually getting back moving, feeling and performing better on a daily basis.

One of my fitness philosophies is “Progress Over Perfection”. People feel like if they can’t get an hour of work in at the gym then there is no point in going but making small 1% changes over time yield massive results. So, if we are going to try and build new habits and routines, we need to make it easy for you to plug into your current lifestyle. Complexity kills execution and we can only improve a habit once we have created it. So, with that said here are 6 of the easiest and most effective ways to fix your posture while at the office or anywhere in the world!

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@yegfitness asked @jeske_golflife to write an article on Posture in the work place. So he put together 6 of the EASIEST Ways you can improve your posture while at work or anywhere in the world! —— Our number one rule for helping anyone make a change is keeping it simple. Complexity kills execution and there are A LOT of other great exercises we would use with a client in a session or if time wasn’t an issue. We know, however, that when creating new habits it needs to be something that’s easy to do and doesn’t disrupt your lifestyle. —— These 6 exercises Jordan chose because they can easily be done at work without having to change clothes and break a sweat. —— The point isn’t to do all of these at once but to get up from your desk every once in awhile and pick 1 or 2. 1️⃣Pelvic Positon- MOST IMPORTANT concept to understand. 2️⃣Elbow Curls 3️⃣Hip Thrusters 4️⃣Wall Slides 5️⃣Wall Knee Press 6️⃣Pull Aparts —— Check out the article by clicking the link in the bio or picking up your own copy in the studio! —— If you want more of these videos let us know by commenting below and sharing the video. —— #projctmobility #posture #yegfitness #fitness

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Pelvic Tilts

We always have to find the low hanging fruit when it comes to movement efficiency. Meaning at the base level what is the number one thing we have to understand and control before we start adding layers and complexity.

Pelvis control is one of the biggest game changers in creating lasting change for your posture.

When the majority of people sit up tall, they extend from their back and lose their rib position, meaning they crank into their mid/low back and lose any sort of core control. This position isn’t sustainable, and they often find themselves slouching again in a few seconds, going through this tug of war with their spine. We as a society need to be more Hip Driven. We create too much movement from our spine through poor flexion and extension patterns and if we can learn how to move and generate more of our movement through our hips, we will save our spine over time. Let me explain.

Try this, sit on a chair and slouch for me. Instead of extending through your back and lifting your chest, roooolllll your pelvis forward. Try putting your hands on your hips and feel yourself rotating your belly button downward toward the front of the chair, like tipping a glass of water. Rep it out a few times by slouching and rolling forward. Try and feel the difference between extending and rolling.

By rolling your pelvis forward, you are able to maintain core position without flaring your ribs. You

are now protecting your spine, will feel taller and are allowing the muscles that are supposed to support you to do their jobs. You are strengthening your lower back muscles and hip flexors by actively holding them in place. It won’t be easy but once you train yourself and can hold this position, you’ll find your back feeling better after a long day at your desk or when traveling in a car or plane.

Elbow Curls- 20 reps

Maintaining the same position in your chair, bring your knuckles to the sides of your head. With palms facing forward and pelvis in position, curl your elbows forward, trying to touch them together. Then bring them back as far as you can behind you. Complete 20-30 reps

Hip Thrusters- 20 reps

WARNING (Be careful where you do this next exercise, If you make eye contact with someone walking by your office or the gym it could be traumatic for the both of you or a little intriguing, depending on what kind of vibes you are wanting to send out)

When we think about posture, we don’t always think of those 2 big muscles underneath us. Especially since our glutes are off most of the day while we sit. In general, most people’s glutes are weak and when we get up to move around, they aren’t as stable as they should be, potentially putting more pressure on our low back and making compensations up our spine.

Find a chair and slide down so that the edge of the chair is right under your shoulder blades. Make sure your feet are far enough in front of you so that when your hips are fully extended in the air your knees are at 90 degrees or just past. Make sure to engage your entire foot but push your weight through your heels. This will strengthen your hamstrings and glute max and build that booty.

Wall Slides With Low Back Press – 10 reps

Wall slides are such a simple but effective exercise to do for better posture.

These are usually done on the ground but taking into account an office setting, doing a half wall sit will allow you to also press your low back into the wall helping to maintain good spine and pelvis position. Bring your arms up into a “W” with your palms facing away. Make sure there is no space between the wall and your back. Take a deep inhale through your nose and while you exhale, slowly start straightening your arms up into a “Y” position while pressing the back of your palms into the wall. Exhaling while you lift will help bring your ribs down into position, counteracting any arching your body wants to do. Inhale as you bring your arms back down and repeat for 10 reps. At the top of each rep really focus on locking your elbows out and pull your shoulders down and back. This one is tougher than it looks.

Wall Knee Push – 30s

Stand beside a wall with your feet shoulder width apart. Get into an athletic position (bend your knees, butt back). Lean into the wall with your shoulder and bend your knee back keeping the front of your leg perpendicular to the ground. Keeping your hip off the wall, push your knee into the wall with about 50% effort for 20-30s. You will feel your glute med (side of your butt) working on the outside leg. This is a great exercise to waken up your lower body before any sort of activity especially for all you runners out there. Repeat on both sides.

Pull Aparts – 15 reps

These can be done in a chair, against a wall or when standing. Make sure to keep your core engaged as most people flare their ribs as they pull across their chest. Using any sort of resistance band, grab it at either end and adjust your grip once you start depending on the resistance of the band. Once your core is braced, keep your arms straight the entire time. Pull the band below your chest across your sternum or nipple line. Make sure not to shrug and think about pulling your shoulder blades down into your back pockets. These will strengthen your posterior shoulders and upper back.

Based on the reps given above I would do 3 sets of everything.  Remember however, doing something is better than nothing and if you only have time to do 1 of the exercises or only a few reps of each then you made progress that day. You can only improve a habit once you have created it so get used to doing 5 reps of each every day until it becomes second nature. Then add 5 reps or 2 sets etc. Progress over Perfection and you will eventually be moving, feeling and performing better! Have fun!

For the full workout with images, check out our March edition of the digital magazine.

By Jordan Jeske – Owner of The PROJCT