How can I permanently
fix rounded shoulders?

If you have rounded shoulders, you may have noticed the extra strain on your neck and back. The good news is that with a little exercise, stretching, and effort on your part, you can correct this posture faux pas and the negative side effects that come with it.

One of the best ways to get your shoulders back into alignment is through careful exercise. As you consistently work your shoulders and supporting muscles, you will strengthen and correct your muscular structure and be on your way to a better-aligned spine and a proud, confident posture. This daily routine trains your muscles to straighten, lengthen, and flex, providing support and relief in all the right places. Establishing these good habits now lays the foundation for better health in the future. Are you ready to get started? Pull your shoulders back, raise your computer — or phone — to eye level, and keep reading to learn what you can do to fix your rounded shoulders and poor posture.

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What Are the Causes of Rounded Shoulders?

Rounded shoulders, or upper crossed syndrome (UCS), are most often caused by poor habits. When UCS occurs, the muscles in your chest, neck, and back become weakened and deformed. When your muscles can no longer hold themselves up, you may notice shoulders and a hunched posture.

The following are some common habits that can result in rounded shoulders:

Hunching over your phone, tablet, or keyboard

Slouching while sitting

Sitting for extended periods of time

Carrying and lifting heavy objects repeatedly

Staring at a computer screen all day with your head and chin pushed out

How Can I Tell if I Have Rounded Shoulders?

One of the biggest giveaways of rounded shoulders is a slumped physical appearance. However, there is also a long list of symptoms of rounded shoulders, including headaches, upper and lower back pain, neck weakness, chest tightness, and restricted range of motion in your neck and shoulders.

Your chiropractor or doctor can also diagnose you with rounded shoulders. To help correct the issue and stop repetitive habits, they will likely recommend some of the exercises and stretches listed below.

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What Is the Best Exercise for Rounded Shoulders?

There are many different round shoulder exercises that can work for you and your individual habits and preferences. As you alter your routine and add new exercises, start slowly and gradually build up your workout’s intensity and length, as going too hard on your first session can be counterproductive.

To fix your round shoulders, try the following exercises.

Plank

When done correctly, a plank aligns your shoulders and forces you to keep your back straight. It also tones your core and strengthens your back, which can help correct muscle imbalances that typically cause rounded shoulders.

To perform this exercise, keep your back and legs straight and prop yourself up on the floor on your toes and forearms. Keep your core tight. Start by holding this position for five to ten seconds and gradually increase the time as you feel comfortable.

Chest Stretches

After you’ve worked your shoulder muscles, spend some time on your chest muscles, too. One way to do this is by using the doorframes in your house. Stand directly in front of the doorframe and hold your arms straight above your head, resting on the lintel of the door. Hold this position and take a step forward with one foot, going into a lunge position without applying strenuous pressure on your arms or legs. Stay in this position for about 30 seconds and repeat as needed.

Handclasp

Perhaps one of the simplest exercises on this list is the handclasp, which is exactly what it sounds like. Stand straight, shoulders back, and clasp your hands together behind your back. Be sure to keep your posture erect and pay particular attention not to push your neck forward.

By holding this position for around 30 seconds, you’ll stretch your chest and practice proper shoulder and back alignment.

Wall Stretch

Another simple at-home exercise is the wall stretch. All you need for this one is yourself and a wall. Stand against the wall and carefully align your head, back, and tailbone. Position your feet slightly away from the wall so they can offer support. Start by lining your body up like this for about 30 seconds and work yourself up to around a minute.

By adding this stretch to your routine, you’ll develop better posture and alignment and slowly correct habits that cause rounded shoulders.

Pull-Ups

One cause of rounded shoulders is focusing too much on building strength in one area. For example, if you work out your chest muscles while neglecting the surrounding areas such as your upper back or shoulders, there may be a resulting muscular imbalance that prevents you from holding your shoulders properly. Doing pull-ups can build up your shoulder muscles, effectively rectifying this imbalance.

To do a pull-up you need access to a pull-up bar, whether it’s located at the gym or installed in your home. First, stand below the bar and grip it with your palms facing away from you and spaced slightly wider than your shoulders. Pull your body up and lift your feet from the ground.

Most people can’t do a pull-up on their first try. If this is the case for you, don’t get discouraged. Start off by lifting your shoulders up and down and engaging your core muscles. As you get used to these movements, bring your body up toward the bar and keep practicing to build up your core and shoulder strength until you can lift your full body weight.

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Learn More About Correcting Rounded Shoulders

For additional information and resources about rounded shoulders, be sure to explore all that Upright Pose has to offer. We provide educational guides and products that can transform poor posture. Check out our website today to see our products or get in touch with us to learn more.

The post How Can I Permanently Fix Rounded Shoulders? appeared first on UPRIGHT Posture Training Device.

Although times are hard and your day-to-day has changed, you don’t have to put everything on hold completely. It’s more important now than ever to keep yourself busy and maintain your health to protect not only yourself but others as well. Staying mentally and physically healthy should be a top priority during these times.

Here are a few ways to remain healthy during quarantine: 

Maintain a Routine 

Although your gym may be closed and your daily routine is no longer consistent, you should still focus on your health. It’s easy to put your exercise routine on the back burner with everything going on, but you should actually be prioritizing your health even more now than you were before.

Start by creating a daily routine to keep yourself on track. This can include waking up at the same time each day, having a healthy breakfast, completing a workout, and going to sleep at a reasonable hour every night. The consistency of a daily routine will help you feel more accomplished throughout the day and a consistent sleep schedule will leave you feeling refreshed. If you feel like you can’t keep up with a daily routine, try keeping track of your tasks and workout routine in a daily planner or on an online calendar. This will give you a little accountability throughout your week and remind you of everything you want to accomplish. 

Check out some helpful health and wellness apps to support your new routine

If you’re working from home or taking online classes during this time, you want to make sure you remain focused and productive outside of the office or classroom in an ergonomic environment that may not be optimal. The best way to achieve maximum productivity is to have the right tools available to you.

Make sure you see  clearly

As we are spending some much of our time in front of screens, we must take care of our eyesight. An app that might help your ability to work is the Warby Parker mobile app. This app allows you to upgrade your prescription eyeglass frames and lenses or virtually try a pair of blue-light glasses. Incorrect prescription lenses and blue-light can cause headaches and overstimulation, so it’s important to keep your eye health top of mind when working from home.

Take care of your back

Many people are worried about their posture nowadays. Longer screen time takes its toll on our body, as people move less and work in a sub-optimal ergonomic environment. , Another health product you could also try using is the UPRIGHT GO. Through the use of a wearable device that naturally helps you improve your posture by providing biofeedback, UPRIGHT GO trains you to sit up straight and offers plans tailored for each person. Maintaining proper posture stimulates blood flow and comfort, which then promotes concentration, so this device and app are worth the investment. 

Clear your mind

A lot of people are experiencing heightened levels of stress and anxiety due to job loss, fear of illness, and uncertainty right now. If you’re one of those people, try using a meditation app like Headspace. Although you may not think meditation is for you, using a guided app that walks you through it is really beneficial and can help you with sleep, anxiety, anger, and focus. 

Keep active

 If your health goal is to lose weight and keep it off or just to find a way to stay active while sheltering inyou should look into downloading an app that helps you track your activity and gives you customizable training plans, like the running app Map My Run. Being able to customize a training routine that is specific to you and your goals will make it that much easier to stick to them long-term. 

Use Telehealth When Needed 

A big concern for many people at the beginning of this pandemic was how to deal with ongoing health problems, as a lot of doctor’s offices were shut down or had limited in-person appointments. However, just because you’re not able to see your healthcare provider in person does not mean you cannot see them at all. Healthcare providers are using third party services like Doxy.me to connect with their patients through personalized links and video calls. There is no download or account set-up necessary, which makes it very convenient for patients and it’s completely protected by data privacy requirements HIPAA, PIPEDA, and GDPRs. This makes it even easier than before for you to speak with your doctor because you can do so without even leaving your home!

There is so much technology available to us in this day and age that make it possible to continue being healthy amidst the pandemic. Now is the time to make sure you are healthy and safe, so it’s a good idea to take advantage of these advancements in your daily routine.

The post Don’t Put off Your Healthcare Needs During Quarantine appeared first on UPRIGHT Posture Training Device.

First, Find Your Neutral Posture

“Sheltering in place and working from home is like a ticking time bomb for ergonomic injury,” says Pricelda Cid, an economist and occupational therapist who’s founded Ergotherapy to promote healthy work environments. Most of us don’t realize but modern office furniture is built to support our neutral posture, which is the position that requires the least amount of effort for the body to maintain while engaging inactivity. At home, many of us are tempted to work from the bed, couch or kitchen table – which could be harmful. 

If you’re working from a  laptop, a laptop riser and external keyboard and mouse are an absolute must, says Cid. If you don’t have a riser, you can use a stack of books instead or connect your laptop to an external monitor – make sure the monitor is at eye level so you don’t create tension in the neck. Another foundational piece of your work setting is your office chair. Invest in an ergonomic chair and utilize the 30-day trial periods many upscale chair manufacturers offer to make sure it’s a good fit, recommends Cid.

Let There Be Light

Another key ingredient to a productive workspace (whether it’s an entire room or just a desk) that makes you happy is natural lighting. As a creative who spends hours in front of her screen, uprighter Willow Hill paid extra attention to choosing the brightest room in the house as her home office. Beyond seeing more clearly, natural lighting gives you a natural energy boost – and can’t we all use that these days?

Surround Yourself with Inspiration

As a creative accustomed to frequent travel, Hill found herself missing the inspiration she’s used to gain from exploring new places. “Because travel is very limited during this time I selected prints from some of my favorite museum experiences I’d had around the world and am framing them on a gallery wall to remind me of my adventures,” she told us.  Whether you miss travelling, too, or are grateful to stay put, surrounding yourself with inspiring art and mementos can lift your spirit and help you feel at home at your home-working situation. 

Zoom In

It’s a Zoom life and we’re just living in it. “In creating my desk space I knew that I would be on Zoom calls for a good portion of my day,” says Hill, whose work as a founder of a creative agency requires much client face-time.”I optimize my decor and monitor to show a clean and well-designed space and ensure there is no messy or cluttered background that distracts from the productivity of my conversations.” A good way to adopt this tip is to make sure that you have a strong visual element as a backdrop – it could be a bold-color painted wall, a wallpaper, a prominent piece of art or even your home library with some pretty accessories and photos arranged on the shelves. 

Mix Practical With Personal

Emanuela Biener has been documenting workspaces since 2017 in her magazine Miss Mandala and her book Women & Spaces. As a content creator and a consultant coaching creative women in business, she has the front row (ergonomic) seat to how workspaces impact mood, productivity and creativity. The secret? Biener says it’s all about mixing the practical and the personal/ “Make sure to have everything you need at an arm’s reach – in drawers or desktop storage solutions. But on top of that, make sure you also have things you love around you: things that are meaningful to you, or that would make you smile when you lift your eyes off the screen. It could be one accessory or many; you work hard enough and long enough, and you deserve a pleasant work environment,” explains Biener.

The post Work From Home: Design Your Space for Success appeared first on UPRIGHT Posture Training Device.