Is Your Poor Posture A Result of Poor Breathing Habits?
We’ve all heard it before. Proper breathing is important for good health and for many reasons. For one thing, taking full proper breaths ensures that you are getting enough oxygen with every breath you take. This leads to better energy levels, a lower heart rate, and allows our bodies to expel carbon dioxide from our bodies. One of the lesser known benefits about proper breathing however, is its connection with proper posture. Poor breathing habits can lead to a weakening of the structures of the body, and can potentially cause or add to poor posture. Of course, the reverse is true and poor posture can also lead to shallow breathing, so it is important to be mindful and address both for optimal benefits.
How Breathing Is Supposed to Work
The diaphragm is a dome shaped muscle which is primarily responsible for the inhalation and exhalation of air in and out of the body. The diaphragm separates the chest from the abdomen, and the dome shape of the diaphragm drapes over the stomach, in a sense covering the stomach and other internal organs and structures in the region.
With proper inhalation, the diaphragm contracts or tightens downward, pulling on the lungs and allowing the lungs to fill with air. When we exhale, the diaphragm relaxes, releasing the lungs and allowing air to be expelled.
Improper Breathing
With improper breathing such as with chest breathing, the diaphragm is no longer the primary muscle in the inhalation and exhalation process. During chest breathing, the muscles of the chest are used to draw air into the lungs, rather than using the diaphragm to pull air into the lungs. The chest expands and contracts with every breath, rather than the stomach expanding and contracting. This leads to shallower breaths as less air is taken when compared to diaphragmatic breathing.
In addition, chest breathing recruits muscles to aid in the breathing process which are normally not meant to be for breathing. This can include the muscles of your rib cage, chest, shoulders, and even neck, which can cause any and all of these muscles to experience tightness, pain, or go into spasm. It is also important to remember that the body is a system, so issues with these muscles causing compression of nerves and blood vessels can often affect other parts and systems of the body as well.
Shallow breathing also puts undue strain on the abdominal muscles as breathing is no longer facilitated in the manner it was designed to. Prolonged periods of strain on the abdominal muscles cause them to tighten, go into spasm, and shorten, while simultaneously weakening and lengthening the back muscles. One of the more deceptive issues potentially caused by shallow breathing and tight stomach muscles is stomach discomfort, which can often be misunderstood as digestion issues. Stomach bloating, a hiatal hernia, reflux, and indigestion can actually be tight abdominal muscles causing these sensations. The most common culprit is the rectus abdominis (aka the six pack muscle), although any and all of the muscles can cause symptoms if digestion issues. In my personal experience, releasing trigger points in the rectus abdominis was able to help with what I thought for years was stomach bloating.
This tightening in the front and loosening in the back also begins to pull the chest cavity forward into Kyphosis, or what is more commonly known as rounded shoulders. This can then pull the head forward into a Forward Head Posture, and thus one of the most common abnormal posture patterns today arises. The effects of Kyphosis and Forward Head Posture are a whole different topic in and of itself which will be discussed in a different post, but a quick Google search will show the effects of both posture patterns.
In addition, shallow and abnormal breathing can also cause trigger points in the diaphragm which is a muscle. It is important to remember that trigger points in any muscle can cause pain and neurological symptoms both locally and referred to other areas away from the source of the discomfort. The Vagus Nerve, Phrenic Nerve, Vena Cava, and Aorta all pass through openings in the diaphragm, so it is conceivable that a functional interference can arise as a result of spasm or trigger points in the diaphragm. Ironically, trigger points in the diaphragm can also further impede proper breathing, which is what the diaphragm is originally designed to facilitate.
Fixing the Breathing
The most effective way to remedy poor posture resulting from poor breathing habits is to simply learn to breathe properly. Working on the body and muscles structurally without first working on proper breathing may temporarily alleviate the discomfort and poor posture, but the body will always revert to the abnormal posture with shallow breathing.
Proper breathing techniques are abound on the internet, and virtually all of them including Yoga breath work, Meditation breath work, and breathing exercises performed by singers help train you to breath properly. The most important thing is to breathe through your belly rather than your chest. When inhaling, expand your belly to allow the diaphragm to draw air into your lungs, rather than using your chest. When exhaling, use your belly to push the air out of your lungs. As you begin to practice proper breathing habits, your posture will begin to improve from the inside out.
Simply being mindful of how you breathe is most of the battle. Most of us breathe shallow unconsciously, and this is especially true when we are engrossed in a movie, stressed, or rushing. Simply recognizing when you are not breathing properly and taking corrective action will lead to overall better breathing habits.
An important thing to keep in mind is that while shallow breathing habits is usually the biggest causal factor in poor posture, you may need to aid the body with muscle and postural work in order to restore proper posture. The body may have been in the same abnormal posture pattern for so long that this has now become the body’s default position. The muscles and ligaments are holding the body in this position and need assistance in breaking the pattern. Proper breathing alone may not be enough to release the posture pattern. Learning both proper breathing and performing postural work will restore proper posture and prevent it from returning in the future.
Fixing the Posture
Once you have established proper breathing habits, the next step is to restore proper posture to your body. The basic idea when restoring proper posture is to release tight muscles, and to strengthen the weak antagonizing muscles. This helps to restore balance to the counteracting sets of muscles. For example, releasing tight abdominal and chest muscles in the front while strengthening the back muscles will help pull the body back into an upright position. There are many exercises and muscle trigger point releases you can certainly do at home to help you experience some relief.
From personal experience however, it is very hard to restore proper posture without the help of a trained professional. For one thing, it is very hard to be objective about your specific posture and what is required to fix it. You may not even realize you have a posture problem when looking in the mirror, since you are so accustomed to seeing yourself in that pattern. Being able to identify the degree and causes of your poor posture is even harder.
The best way to correct postural problems is to work with someone who is trained and will have the skills to make sure you are doing things safely and effectively. This can include working with a personal trainer, yoga instructor, or Physical Therapist. My biggest recommendation however, would be to work with a Chiropractor who is adept at Physical Rehabilitation or working with corrective exercises. Chronic poor posture can lead to misalignments in the spine which only a Chiropractor would be able to address.
Nonetheless, you can always work on yourself if that’s what you prefer. Just make sure to research what you are doing, start out slowly, and always stop if you experience pain. I will cover posture and correcting poor posture in future posts, so stay tuned!
I wish you the best!
Trigger points for the Rectus Abdominis, Pectoralis Major, and Pectoralis Minor:
