
How Posture Makes Us Human - dnetesn
http://nautil.us/issue/60/searches/how-posture-makes-us-human
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joe_the_user
The most interesting modern theory of posture (imo) is that of FM Alexander,
The Alexander Technique[1] (a system that has influenced other systems, such
as those of Feldenkrais). The Alexander Technique is notable for avoiding the
approach of standing by force of will and rather standing naturally once one
has retrained a faulty idea of one's position in space. Proper posture thus
becomes "effortless" rather than being a matter of force, effort or will
(Alexander's writings on how modern society miscalibrates basic human balance
reflexes are worth a look also).

It is interesting to read the long heritage of the idea of standing by will -
especially the similarities of the idea of Alexander and Hegel passage quoted
in the article.

[1]
[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Alexander_Technique](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Alexander_Technique)

~~~
paulsutter
Everyone I know with good posture are physically fit, none of whom have
“retrained a faulty idea of one’s position in space”. The sense we have that
someone is fit generally comes from their posture.

Does this idea-retraining work as well as the gym? Do you know examples of
unfit people with great posture through idea-retraining?

Of course we all know unfit people who are always straining to “sit up
straight” and so forth, which always seems unnatural. Perhaps these people are
the target market for this idea-retraining?

~~~
crazygringo
Because good posture is effortless and our body is built for balance, it
doesn't require anything but a minimal level of fitness. And actually,
physical strength can sometimes exacerbate posture issues rather than solve
them, as it introduces additional muscle tightness or tightness imbalances
(e.g. bench presses leading to tight pecs leading to hunched shoulders, or
running leading to tight hamstrings leading to exaggerated spinal curve).

For me personally, the gym made my posture worse, and it was only through
extensive body awareness practice (like AT), stretching, and relaxation
techniques that I was able to solve posture problems.

You know how they say abs are made in the kitchen, not the gym? Same thing
with posture -- made through awareness, not the gym.

~~~
Jommi
Is it really honest to say "gym made my posture worse", when actually it
stemmed from overtraining certain muscle groups over-proportionately?

What do you think of the thesis that the right gym exercises might tune your
muscle's "normal state" to more closely resemble "healthy" posture?

~~~
crazygringo
It wasn't over-training at all, it was simply the fact I hadn't incorporated
extensive stretching. Once I stretched and my muscles had their full range of
motion, that fixed it. (If I was unclear, that was the balance I was referring
to above -- of tightness, not of strength.)

I started going to the gym because of that thesis, and then I discovered it
didn't work. From what I understand, our muscles are in balance with each
other not according to their strength (except in cases of extreme imbalance),
but according to the amount of tension our brain signals for them to maintain.
This signaling arises from our mental image of the position our body should be
in.

For me personally, for example, I was sitting, standing and walking, always
leaning slightly back, which my body compensated for with an overly curved
lower spine and overly tight abdominal muscles. Standing straight literally
felt like I would topple forwards, because I had an incorrect sensation of
body positioning. Once I learned to become aware of that, it took me a couple
of weeks to _actually_ stand straight, and learn that as the new normal. And
this took care of the other problems.

It had nothing to do with the balance of muscle strengths, and everything to
do with my perceptions. (Extensive hamstring stretching was also necessary,
but not sufficient, to make standing straight possible.)

I'm not saying don't go to the gym -- I love the gym! -- what I'm saying is,
if you want to fix your posture, you have to change how use you your body.
Stretching can be necessary to unlock tight areas, but lack of or imbalanced
strength is not the issue in an otherwise healthy adult.

------
projektir
This concept is... exceedingly philosophically problematic, and one of those
things that might be cute on paper if you don't think about it too much, but
rather horrific if you do.

We should keep in mind the positions many of these philosophers were in. They
often come from aristocracy classes and look down on commoners. They had
access to better resources and were not ailed with problems, and therefore had
no trouble defining people who are weaker, sicker, lower, smaller, uglier,
etc., as "lesser". It's not a coincidence that many philosophers were not even
able to register women as people. The downtrodden person is easy to look down
upon as they have been damaged.

No room for complexity or messiness that's inherent in the lives of most
people. These philosophers liked living by ideals, but human life is not
ideal, and creating these ideals simply gates away most humans. If anything,
the concept is non-human, but in its nature, Luciferous, as it separates off a
"worthy" elite and throws away the rest. Most normal people do not survive the
judgment of a philosopher.

A hunching person is human. A person with damaged limbs is a human. An older
person who cannot stand upright is human. If you assign value to posture, then
you have forgotten these people and flagged them as unworthy, and that makes
_you_ not human more than anything discussed in this article. It is that
thought which is immoral, it is that thought which makes the slave, and not at
all the posture of the slave. The excuse that comes after, not the origin of
the evil.

~~~
Valmar
I agree. :)

