Base-Line Healing logo. Stick figure with arms outstretched above shoulder height, legs apart. Rainbow of colours up midline. Red at pelvic floor Base then a line of orange, yellow, green blue extending to the head. Showing the body aligned and balanced, the natural way to treat fibromyalgia. Use your body better slogan.

A Good Posture.

Posture means the position of your body.

  • All of it.
  • At any time.

Good posture = comfortable body. No tension. Strong, flexible.

Bad posture = mechanical stress. Pain, inflammation, damage. Restrictions.

The body is a remarkable machine, able to function with a lot of damage and restrictions but, to have a good posture, you must be free to move and adapt. Every position you are in matters to your body.

Connective Tissues & Posture.

Connective tissues run through the whole of the body, from head to fingers to toes.

connective tissue

Physical restrictions within connective tissues negatively affect posture. Physical restrictions reduce range of movement, and the whole body must adapt to compensate when restrictions are present, altering our positioning to less than ideal.

physical restrictions

Restricted connective tissues contribute to poor posture.

Muscles & Posture.

Muscles are the body's 'tissues of action', adjusting the body and creating a better posture through movement.

Posture can be:

  • Passive posture. The positioning of your body when you're not thinking about it. The brain operating muscles at a subconscious level.
  • Active posture. Conscious thought about "how you are holding yourself". Using voluntary muscles under voluntary control to improve your positioning. (All skeletal muscles have the potential to be under voluntary control).

Posture can be improved by consciously working with the right muscles for a sufficient length of time, so that an active posture becomes the passive norm.

Using the right muscles will improve your posture.

Working with the right muscles facilitates the release of physical restrictions in connective tissues. Releasing restrictions regains movement, allowing posture to be further improved. An ongoing process.

The Main Muscles For A Better Posture.

The five main muscles of movement are the key muscles to focus on to improve your posture:

  1. pelvic floor
  2. rectus abdominis
  3. gluteus maximus
  4. rectus femoris
  5. trapezius

the 5 main muscles of movement

skeleton with the main muscles of movement. Back and side-front views. The pelvic floor muscles can't be seen from these two perspectives. The rectus abdominis from pelvis to chest. The rectus femoris from hip to shin down the front of each thigh. The trapezius from mid-back to the back of the head, extending out towards each shoulder like a kite-shaped muscle over the upper back. The gluteus maximus, big ass muscles at the back of the pelvis.

These 5 (paired, left and right) muscles provide the central framework for a healthy, strong body.

When fully functional, and the body is free of physical restrictions, the 5 main muscles of movement allow the head, spine and limbs to be in the correct relative positions.The body is balanced and physically aligned.

skeleton and the main muscles of movement shown from the front demonstrating how they align the body by arranging our midline anatomy on the median plane. The rectus abdominis muscles when fully extended and engaged straighten the linea alba our primary guide for body alignment. The spine, shoulders, hips and knees are all in the correct relative positions and the body is balanced left and right sides.

body alignment and balance

"A neutral spine" is often mentioned when talking about good posture. The main muscles of movement create a neutral spine.

a neutral spine

skeleton seen from the side. Showing the rectus abdominis muscles at the front of the abdomen between pelvis and chest, like a band of muscle that is attached to bone either end but otherwise is not near other bones. These are the muscles that should support the body, not the spine. When the rectus abdominis muscles are fully extended and active the lower spine is positioned correctly and not under undue tension or stress. The rectus femoris muscles run down the front of each thigh, crossing the hip and knee joints. Strong poles of muscle to connect the legs to the torso, aligning the hip and knee joints. The rectus abdominis and rectus femoris muscles attach to the pelvis at the front at approximately the same level when viewed from the side. The gluteus maximus muscles, large and powerful at the back of the pelvis, extending above and below the level of where the rectus abdominis and rectus femoris attach to provide the link between base-line and legs. The trapezius muscles from the back of the head to midback, sculpted muscles that influence the positioning of the upper spine.

Become more aware of how you use your main muscles of movement (whatever you are doing and whatever position you are in) to assess and improve your posture. It takes time and focus to learn to use the right muscles and improve your posture. Little by little, improvements are made.

Whatever you are doing, your posture will be good when the 5 main muscles of movement are correctly used.

Self-Assessment Of Posture.

Sensory feedback from your body supplies more information about your posture than any external assessment (someone else) can. This feedback is part of your sense of position, motion and balance, known as proprioception. Becoming aware of this feedback from your body is the basis of conscious proprioception, the connection between body and mind.

conscious proprioception

outline of human figure seen from the front. Showing the network of nerves throughout the body. The central nervous system consisting of the spinal cord and brain. A web of smaller nerves from the extremities feeding into larger nerves, transmitting the sensory information about the body's position, motion and balance which is processed for our sense of proprioception. Conscious proprioception is when we experience this sensory feedback our body has for us. Seeing the sparkles, feeling the position of the body relative to base-line, instinctively knowing where our natural range of movement should take us.

Increased awareness of your sense of proprioception allows you to assess your posture for yourself.

Self-assessment facilitates self-correction of posture. Micro-adjustments in positioning, too subtle to appreciate on clinical exam, can have wide effects throughout the body (everything's connected), which can be felt when the body-mind connection is strong.

Posture And Your Body's Base-Line.

Working with the 5 main muscles of movement to improve your posture and increase your sense of conscious proprioception starts from Base-Line: pelvic floor Base, rectus abdominis Line.

Base-Line muscles

human figure seen from the front, looking up the body with the baseline muscles shown. The pelvic floor muscles forming a basket at the base of the body. The solid foundation from where the rectus abdominis muscles extend. The rectus abdominis muscles are like to 2 parallel stacks of panels of muscle that go up the front of the abdomen from base to mid chest. The body's core pillar of strength either side of the linea alba the body's baseline for alignment.

Your Base-Line is the central reference needed to assess the positioning of the rest of your body. Think of your Base-Line muscles as your 'core pillar of strength' from where the rest of the body extends.

Working from Base-Line will increase awareness of the relative positioning of your midline anatomy, to feel your state of physical alignment and balance.

5 midline markers

Connect with your Base-Line.

Feel for yourself.

Posture And Movement.

Posture isn't static - we are constantly on the move, and a good posture means we can move well, free and unrestricted, through a full range of natural movement.

full range natural movement

Improving Your Posture.

Learn a little anatomy - familiarise yourself with your 5 main muscles of movement, find them on your body, feel for how much you can activate them.

Feel for balance between left and right of each of your main muscles of movement.

Explore your range of movement, supported by your Base-Line muscles.

The roll-down action was my go-to move as I focused on activating and extending my Base-Line. Do whatever feels right to you. The more you work with your main muscles the more progress you will make.

the roll-down

Learning to use the right muscles brings an understanding of what a good posture is. The body feels strong and comfortable. Movement flows through a full range of natural movement.

Base-Line classifications of posture.

Becoming aware of anticipatory postures and the activation of the wrong muscles is an important step in correcting the dysfunction. Breathing with your Base-Line and focusing on the location and activity state of the main muscles of movement will facilitate the correction of bad postural habits that have developed.

breathing with your Base-Line

It takes time and effort to improve your posture, things only you can provide. Think of how you are put together and what level of body awareness you have.

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