- Are your shoulders rounded?
- Are you developing a dowager's hump?
- Would you like to feel stronger?
- Would you like to appear younger?
If you've answered YES to any of the above then I can highly recommend this simple but very effective posture exercise. Surfing YouTube one day, I came across an excellent video by posture expert Dr Natalie Cordova. I tried it out and almost immediately I noticed a difference.
I've never had good posture. I'm quite tall and I find that if I don't exercise to build core strength my back seems unable to support itself. I often slouch and when I do my shoulders come forward and my back becomes rounded. This collapsed, rounded posture is still there when I stand up.
Like most people I can sit and stand straight when I put my mind to it but as soon as my wind wanders on to something else my muscles relax and before I realise what's happening I'm slouching over my desk or stooping like someone twice my age.
I know how to build core strength in my abdomen and lower back but I hadn't realised how easy it is to work the muscles that keep the shoulders back and the chest open; prerequisites for good posture.
Have a look at Natalie's video and see just how easy it is. http://www.youtube.com/watch?
Obviously Natalie is wearing her sports kit to demonstrate the posture exercise but I do it no matter what I'm wearing: pyjamas, work clothes, jeans. It really doesn't matter. I do this brilliant posture exercise whenever I feel like it. Like all exercises it only works if you do it regularly so I make sure I do it every day.
It only takes a minute or two and I have found that it works well even without the added weights. I don't have dumb-bells but if they're to hand I'll grab a couple of cans of chickpeas. (A couple of cans of Special Brew would work too!) And you can do this posture exercise anywhere. I do it when waiting for the kettle to boil, when I go up and down stairs, when I'm dancing round the kitchen to my favourite music ... I do it every day for just a few minutes because I know that it really works!
When I started doing this posture exercise I noticed a difference after just two days. I sat more upright, I was aware that my back was straighter when I walked and when I looked in the mirror I could see that my shoulders were noticeably less rounded. I felt stronger and my body looked younger. And all with very little effort, no time out of my day and without even breaking a sweat. What's not to like about that?!
There isn't really much else to say except ... Try It ... It Works!
So now you know how to get rid of rounded shoulders. Let me tell you how to get rid of a bloated tum.
Thank you so much! I'm only 24 but have the most rounded shoulders all the time no matter what I'm doing, hopefully this will solve it!
ReplyDeleteVery helpful!! I'm 16 and have had rounded shoulders and terrible posture all my life and have never been able to help it cos I get tired after a few minutes with a straight posture. I'm definately gonna try this!!! =)
ReplyDeleteya me too buddy
Deletei am also 16
ya i hope it will work on me too
Deletei am just only 16
i m just 15 and i have rounded shoulders.....i tried a a lot but after a day or tow i started stooping again..but i think this is going to help me straighten my posture and and get rid of my rounded shoulders :)
DeleteYeah same her I hope this helps me too! I am 16 lol
ReplyDeleteTHANK YOU SO MUCH! I am 18 and have has rounded shoulderss all my life and a rounded back, i am the same i can straghten my back when i want to but then as soon as my mind wanders on to somethng else my muscles relax and i hunch over again! :( I hope this works!
ReplyDeleteThis exercise is great at keeping shoulders back but you might need to strengthen your abdominal core to keep your back strong and your torso upright. There's a really effective Pilates exercise called The Hundred. Lots of demonstrations on YouTube ... you might like to have a look at this one
ReplyDeleteThanks for posting this up :)
ReplyDeleteMany thanks for posting this brilliant shoulder exercise. Never thought something so simple could be so effective so quickly.
ReplyDeleteI'm 39 and have been working at a desk every day for quite a number of years now and have therefore developped tense and rounded shoulders. I've been doing this for a few days several times a day now and have also noticed a great difference. My posture has improved and the chest seems more open (easier breathing). I also think the shoulders have become a bit straighter. So glad I found this. Definitely one to recommend!
I am so thankful to find this exercise. I am 57, and my posture is so bad. I have had a chiropractor and a physical therapist tell me I have rounding of the shoulders, but they have never told me acout this exercise. I am surely going to try it. I have problems sleeping at night because of this, and I usually will lay on one side, and stretch my arm out to the other side many times at night. I sure hope this exercise gives me some relief. I am very excited about this!!!
ReplyDeleteSo happy to find this exercise!!
ReplyDeletethanks i'll try
ReplyDeleteThank you for this. I just tried the exercise and I can't get the full range of motion. Guess it's going to take me a while to come right, but at least I have something to work with now!
ReplyDeleteThanks a lot for the recommendations. After doing them for a few days, I have already noticed a huge difference in my rounded shoulders AND forward head posture. Great stuff!
ReplyDeleteWill definitely try this. I have bad posture as well and have to remind myself constantly to pull should back. I hope this works! Thank you.
ReplyDeletethanks looked everywhere for help non worked hope this dose
ReplyDeleteWow! Thank you! It's so simple, but just trying this here, right now, at my desk, with no weights, it's already helped me! It tightens my upper back, lowers my shoulders, and opens my upper chest. I will do a bit of this every day.
ReplyDeletethe main thing that bugs me is seeing myself in pictures! oh my god!!! i am 61 years young, feel great, small frame, never been over weight, but when i look at myself slupping over like that, doesnt matter what i wear. i certainly hope this helps. i thought abt one of those (looks like a sports bra). will that help??
ReplyDeleteDelighted to find a simple exercise that will help my shoulders. I have tried everything but I always revert to my old ways which began at puberty - I was embarassed by my developing boobs. So silly, I know!
ReplyDeleteNot silly at all I did the same thing. My mother never said stop slouching or stand up straight . So today as a woman in my forties I have rounded shoulders and a dowagers hump. It's hard to correct now that I amso used to it but I hate the way I llk and feel. I have also had neck surgery and am currently recovering from second back surgery. My abdominals are gone cause a Dr cut my stomach muscles during a c section. So how can I improve all of these things when I feel there's so much working against me?
DeleteWow, same for me, but opposite, I had no boobs so I hunched over. At that young backward puberty age. Then 4 back operations and a huge stomach surgery where the muscles were cut. So you do the best you can and keep exercising, it all helps. That's all we can do, even though we have the extra problems.
DeleteThanks for posting! Fingers crossed it helps :)
ReplyDeleteive been looking for something like this,ive got rounded shoulders,will find my small dumbells need to strenghten my shoulders as ive been feeling very weak,hopefully this exercise will work for me
ReplyDeleteCool. I was looking for something for me. Easy to do as a part of my current fitness goals. I realized that my 11 yo daughter would benefit. Isn't she the lucky gal to know how to resolve this at an early age?
ReplyDeleteThank your very much for this blog about shoulder brace. visibly nice.
ReplyDelete