Fitness and posture are becoming increasingly talked about in the same breath. Training in assessing posture and gait is now standard practice for sports therapists as the importance of your shape has become recognised as an analytical measurement. If you have had sports injury problems you will probably have been given posture exercises to improve a muscle imbalances or weakness.

Science has intervened with some incredible machines that can measure the slightest imbalance or muscle weakness. Once a diagnosis has been made an exercise to correct the problem can be prescribed and there you are - problem solved!                               Image from www.flexinthecity.com

Or is it? For a start I believe that fitness and posture, good posture that is, do not always necessarily go together. The sort of exercises and physical activity many people subject themselves to generally have little in common with 'natural' movement. For example, sit-ups and stomach crunches are not your average everyday activity. If you are performing even only 30 a day what impact does that have on your abdominal muscles? Would you ever use them like this for any other action? Funny isn't it that such an odd movement has become accepted as a standard exercise, yet it conditions your muscles in a way that does nothing to help your sport or daily actions.

But what about core strength you say? Again, I would argue that your body does not use its core muscles in isolation for any natural activity, so why do we believe that exercising them individually with some pretty odd movements should help?

Fitness And Posture:
The Facts And Fallacies