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Posture Perfect: How to Improve Your Posture and Why It Matters · The Dohnal Health Minute

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  Hey there, Nashville. This is Dr. Chris Donnell
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  from Donnell Chiropractic and today we're going
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  to talk about something I see every single day
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  in my practice. Your posture. Now I know what
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  you're thinking. Posture sounds like something
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  your mom nagged you about when you were a kid,
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  but here's the thing. The way you hold your body
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  throughout the day has a massive impact on how
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  you feel, how you move, and even how well your
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  nervous system works. So let's dive in. First,
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  let's talk about what good posture actually means.
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  It's not about standing like a soldier at attention
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  or sitting perfectly still like a statue. Good
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  posture is about balance. When you're standing
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  or sitting with good posture, your muscles and
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  joints are working efficiently. Your head is
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  balanced over your shoulders. Your shoulders
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  are back but relaxed. Your spine has its natural
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  curves. and everything is stacked up nicely so
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  gravity isn't constantly pulling you forward
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  or to the side. Now here's what happens when
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  your posture goes south. And I see this all the
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  time. People come in with neck pain, headaches,
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  or that nagging ache between the shoulder blades.
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  And when I look at how they're sitting or standing,
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  it all makes sense. When your head drifts forward
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  even just a couple of inches, it puts enormous
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  stress on your neck and upper back. For every
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  inch your head moves forward, it effectively
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  gains about 10 pounds of weight. So if your head
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  is three inches forward, that's like carrying
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  an extra 30 pounds all day long. No wonder your
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  neck hurts. Let me tell you what I hear a lot
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  in the office. People say, I sit at a desk all
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  day. And by three or four in the afternoon, I'm
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  just exhausted and sore. That's your body telling
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  you something. Poor posture makes your muscles
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  work way harder than they should. Some muscles
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  get overstretched and weak. Others get tight
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  and overworked. It's like driving your car with
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  the parking brake on. You'll get where you're
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  going, but it's going to be rough. So what can
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  you actually do about it? Let's start with some
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  simple changes you can make today. If you work
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  at a computer, take a look at your setup. Your
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  screen should be at eye level. not down on your
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  lap, not way up high, right at eye level. Your
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  keyboard should be close enough that you're not
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  reaching forward, and your feet should be flat
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  on the floor. These little adjustments make a
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  huge difference. Here's another thing. Set a
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  timer on your phone for every 30 minutes. When
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  it goes off, stand up, move around, roll your
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  shoulders back, take a few deep breaths. You'd
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  be amazed how much this helps. Your body wasn't
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  designed to stay in one position for eight hours
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  straight. Now let's talk about your phone. I
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  call it Tech Neck and it's everywhere. When you're
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  looking down at your phone, your head is way
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  forward and your neck is flexed. Do that for
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  hours every day and you're setting yourself up
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  for problems. So here's the fix. Bring your phone
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  up to eye level instead of dropping your head
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  down to the phone. It feels a little goofy at
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  first, but your neck will thank you. Here's something
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  else that really matters. Strengthen your core.
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  And I don't just mean doing a hundred crunches.
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  I mean the muscles that stabilize your spine
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  and pelvis. Simple exercises like planks, bridges,
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  and even just practicing standing on one foot
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  can make a big difference. A strong core supports
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  good posture without you having to think about
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  it. Now I want to be clear about something. If
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  you're dealing with pain, stiffness, or you feel
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  like your posture is really stuck in a bad pattern,
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  that's when you need to come see us. We can assess
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  how your spine is moving, find areas that aren't
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  functioning well, and create a plan to get you
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  back on track. Chiropractic adjustments help
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  restore proper movement to your spine, and when
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  your spine moves better, your posture naturally
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  improves. Here's the bottom line. Good posture
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  isn't about being perfect. It's about being mindful
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  of how you hold your body and making small adjustments
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  throughout the day. It's about setting up your
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  workspace so it supports you instead of working
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  against you. And it's about staying strong and
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  mobile so your body can do what it's designed
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  to do. If you're here in Nashville and you're
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  struggling with neck pain, back pain, or you
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  just know your posture could use some help, give
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  us a call at Dahnol Chiropractic. We'd love to
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  help you feel better and move better. Thanks
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  for listening and I'll catch you next time.