Start your day on the right foot by incorporating these exercises into your morning routine to stave off any neck and back pain.
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How you carry yourself speaks volumes, with posture being a noticeable first impression. Beyond appearances, good posture ensures that your joints and bones stay in proper alignment, helping you avoid those pesky neck and back issues. If you aim to elevate your posture, revamping your workout routine is an excellent start. To get you moving in the right direction, we’ve found six home exercises that promise to boost your postural strength faster than Pilates after you hit 60.
“Improving posture isn’t about making a conscious effort to stand up straight. It’s about training the muscles and mobility that make good posture second nature. Devoting just ten minutes each day consistently can outperform any pricey class or gadget,” says Dr. Andrew Gorecki, PT, DPT, FAFS, Owner of Superior Physical Therapy in Traverse City, MI, and co-founder/CEO of MovementRx, a leading remote therapy platform embraced by physical therapy clinics nationwide.
Here are six exercises to seamlessly integrate into your morning routine.
- Begin standing near a counter for support with your feet hip-width apart.
- Slowly rock forward onto the balls of your feet, holding for 2 seconds.
- Then, rock back onto your heels, holding for 2 seconds.
- Complete 10 to 15 rocks.
- Then, add side-to-side weight shifting for 10 reps.
Standing Hip Circles
[embed]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=D_kQzMB_HkY[/embed]
“Hip mobility is the single most under-addressed piece of the posture puzzle in older adults. Tight hips force the low back to arch, which cascades up through the whole spine,” Dr. Gorecki says. “[This exercise] hits the hip in three planes. [It] frees up the hips so the pelvis can sit correctly instead of tilting forward and pulling the low back with it.”
- Begin standing tall with your hands on your hips.
- Start to make slow circles with your hips, as if you’re stirring with your pelvis.
- Perform 5 circles in each direction.
- Then, shift your hips forward and back for 5 reps and side-to-side for another 5 reps.
Cat-Cow
[embed]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LIVJZZyZ2qM[/embed]
“Cat-cow wakes up the entire spine and trains the deep core to control spinal position. One of the highest-return exercises for posture at any age,” Dr. Gorecki tells us.
- Assume a tabletop position on your hands and knees.
- For cow pose, breathe in, drop your belly toward the floor, concave your back, and gaze upward, holding for 2 seconds.
- For cat pose, breathe out, round your back, tuck your chin in toward your chest, and tuck your tailbone, holding for 2 seconds.
- Perform 8 to 10 rounds.
Thoracic Rotation
[embed]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xY7AqP7qCpM[/embed]
“The thoracic spine (mid back) is where posture is won or lost after 60. When the mid back stiffens, the shoulders round forward and the neck jams up trying to compensate. Getting rotation back into the mid back is the single most impactful thing you can do for upper-body posture,” Dr. Gorecki explains.
- Begin sitting tall in a sturdy chair with your feet flat on the ground.
- Cross your arms over your chest.
- Gradually rotate your upper body to the right as far as you’re comfortably able to, holding for 2 seconds.
- Return to the center.
- Then, rotate to the left.
- Perform 8 rotations in each direction.
Wall Angels
[embed]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1UU4VvklQ44[/embed]
“Wall angels train the muscles that hold the shoulders back and down, which are the postural muscles most weakened by decades of sitting and phone use. Feels weirdly hard for how simple it looks,” Dr. Gorecki says.
- Stand tall with your back pressed against a wall and your feet 6 inches away from it.
- Press your lower back into the wall.
- Lift your arms to a goalpost position so that the backs of your hands, elbows, and shoulders all touch the wall.
- Then, slide your arms up the wall as high as they’ll go while keeping your hands and elbows against the wall.
- Use control as you slide them back down.
- Perform 10 slow reps.
Chin Tucks
[embed]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7rnlAVhAK-8[/embed]
“Forward head posture is one of the most visible signs of poor posture in older adults, and one of the most fixable. Chin tucks train the deep neck flexors that hold the head over the shoulders instead of drifting forward,” Dr. Gorecki says.
- Begin sitting or standing tall.
- Glide your head straight back over your shoulders, thinking about making a double chin.
- Hold for 2 seconds.
- Return to the start position.
- Perform 10 reps.