Taking good care of your bones includes minding your posture.  Continual slouching will do harm to your back and spine.  Our expert contributor and Posture Method Teacher, Dana Davis, reminds us of the importance of using good posture.

Many chairs we sit in are not posture friendly.  Often times we are not paying attention to how we sit and find ourselves forming to the shape of the chair.  Learn how to use good posture every time you take a seat using the following tips:

Sit on Your Butt, Not Your Back to Prevent Osteoporosis

Most Americans sit too far back on the pelvis, so that they are sitting on their backs essentially. When the pelvis is tucked under, the spine collapses into a C shape – what we call “sitting like a cashew.” This sitting posture leads to back and neck pain, compressed organs and blood vessels, loss of height and increased muscle tension. You can learn how to sit pain-free and elegantly by following these guidelines, based on decades of studying people in less industrialized countries.

• Stand in front of your chair.
• Relax your belly and bend at your hip crease (where your legs join your torso).
• Place the front of your pelvis on the chair (we call this the “fig leaf area”) and scoot all the way back in the chair.
• Come up to an upright position resting against the back of the chair.
• Relax your belly and back, letting your front ribs descend.
• Relax your legs and place your feet under your knees.
• Draw each shoulder back and down and then relax them.
• Draw your chin in to your throat, stretch the back of your neck, then bring your face back up and relax. Make sure your chin is not lifted up.

Relax and enjoy!

Dana Davis, Certified Balance Posture Method teacher and Yoga Teacher, Sonoma Body Balance

Photo Credit: http://www.fitness-programs-for-life.com/good_posture.html