Improve your posture with massage

Many factors can contribute to poor posture and add stress to the body.

Some of these factors may feel unavoidable such as work, driving, cleaning and even family factors such as carrying young children and breastfeeding.

From my experience poor posture is one of the main underlying causes of pain and dysfunction of adults. Bad posture is usually developed over a long period of time and certainly isn’t something that happens over night.

Poor posture develops when certain muscle groups become short, tight and start to stiffen up. This restricts normal range of motion and strains other muscle groups that wouldn’t usually be strained.

With todays increasing use of computers and technology the most common type of posture that presents is an “Upper Crossed” posture. This is distinctive of forward, slouching and rounded shoulders and is usually accompanied by a protruding chin and neck.

People who adapt this kind of posture may be affected by working at a computer for many hours a day and this will certainly exacerbate their symptoms. Generally people with this type of posture will have a series of muscle tightness and strength imbalances in their upper body.

However, all is not lost and there are definitely ways to help improve your posture, pain and overall quality of life.

In order for one to change their posture this means changing their habits. Firstly, you need to address the tight muscles that are restricting normal range of motion this can be done through remedial massage techniques and some prescribed stretching from your therapist.

Remedial massage is crucial in the initial stages to help to retrain the tight and short muscles and allow the body to be realigned.

Once the muscles have been realigned, specific stretching and strengthening programs will be advised to be performed at home/work to help relieve your symptoms.

Have you found massage helps with your posture? Please share in the comments below.

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26 Comments

- - meedee said
  - 13 Jul 2021
    11:10 am
hhmm sounds interesting. Wish I had the money to try this.

- - cherz said
  - 04 Mar 2017
    8:20 pm
Hubby and me have a chiropractic visit once a month …it keeps our bodies in shape. We consider it part of good health.
And yes I love massage as well but massages are not that common with us.

- - tessie said
  - 03 Mar 2017
    2:33 pm
Unfortunately where I live it’s not possible to get a massage. Would be great to have though.

- - mom101628 said
  - 02 Mar 2017
    10:19 pm
Hope you mean I can improve my posture by massaging someone else as I do that daily.

- - rachel1970 said
  - 02 Mar 2017
    7:29 pm
I would love to have more massages and am lucky if I get one once a year. This is a good excuse to have more-makes perfect sense to me.

- - rovermum said
  - 02 Mar 2017
    5:39 pm
I think I need a massage every day! This is a great article and I totally agree with it. It makes a lot of sense. I do have a massages semi-regularly, but looks like I should have more!!! Many more!

- - mom94125 said
  - 02 Sep 2016
    10:54 am
yeah this sounds like it will be benenficial to many.

- - Sam said
  - 17 Aug 2016
    9:40 pm
Massage and a good chiropractor. Mine helps me so much. Helps posture, helps aches and pains and kind of just balances your body back to normal (when you hear all the cracks) I love it. Such a relief

- - ella12 said
  - 17 Aug 2016
    11:43 am
I wish I could have more massages, I love a good relaxation massage. I have heard Pilates is great for posture too.

- - mom101628 said
  - 13 Jul 2016
    9:41 pm
I used to be able to get rid of poor posture neck ailments with a few targeted massage points over my shoulder and neck exercises. Alas as I have grown older, these are no longer working. I can’t afford a massage and the last one I did have, didn’t help as the practitioner wanted me to go back every week for 3 months to get the muscles right. I didn’t believe this, so that was that.
Just must do more of the neck exercises and see what I can do myself.

- - mom71820 said
  - 17 Jun 2016
    3:01 pm
Oh so true! I try to get them often, but most of the time months pass & I haven’t been.

- - caitlinplummer said
  - 13 Jun 2016
    8:55 pm
I’m so glad you enjoyed the article. Good posture is something that everyone should be reminded of!

- - mom19782016 said
  - 13 Jun 2016
    8:07 pm
I’d be happy to have a regular massage but unfortunately it’s too expensive!

- - Nas01 said
  - 13 Jun 2016
    11:35 am
I am soooooooo overdue for a massage and realignment.

- - mum4107 said
  - 12 Jun 2016
    10:17 pm
I totally agree with this, I only wish Icould have a massage more frequently

- - mom160421 said
  - 12 Jun 2016
    9:52 pm
I think the more time I spend on the computer, the worse my posture becomes. A massage and exercises to correct posture problems sounds like a good idea.
- mom93821 replied
  
  13 Jun 2016 , 8:58 am
  Too much time on a computer may cause bad posture – especially hunching over the computer. I time limit use to avoid this problem too.
- - taynik46 said
  - 12 Jun 2016
    5:22 pm
as I am typing this I am prompted by your article to correct my posture – something I am really guilty of not correcting, hence the horrible neck aches and head aches – thanks for an informative article

- - curlytops said
  - 12 Jun 2016
    4:19 pm
Another benefit of a good massage!

- - BellaB said
  - 12 Jun 2016
    2:14 pm
Yet another good reason to have a massage!

- - mom140193 said
  - 12 Jun 2016
    1:07 pm
Before I had my kids I had really bad posture. I think from working at a computer and using a phone most days at work. I’ve improved since having my kids. I love massage and wish I could have one more often! I usually manage 1 a year.