Top 10 exercises for posture correction

Author: Timko Ilya - master of the whole project and fitness trainer.
2015-10-22

Of course, by posture correction, I mean slouching (kyphosis) and/or scoliosis. In the case of scoliosis, everything said in this article will apply if you have Grade 1 or 2 scoliosis. If the curvature is more than second degree, the exercises will have limited effectiveness. So, there are 3 factors that influence our posture:

• Shape of the spine: 50% influence.
• Habit of keeping the back straight: 25% influence.
• Tone and development of back muscles: 25% influence.

As you can see, the shape of the spine is crucial. Unfortunately, it can only be influenced during childhood and adolescence. After the age of 20, the shape of the spine is no longer changeable, or it is almost impossible to change. This means that if you are over 20, you can only influence your habits and your back muscles. In other words, you won't completely fix your posture, but you can partially improve it. If the spinal curvature is minor, habits and muscular development can help mitigate this defect.

All exercises (except the first one) listed in this article develop your upper back muscles and, if you are young enough, help to align your spine. These exercises engage the latissimus dorsi, rear delts, and muscles surrounding the scapula. It is these muscles that are responsible for our posture.

The overall technique element for all these exercises is to squeeze the shoulder blades together and expand the chest during the effort phase. Without this element, none of these exercises will lead to improved posture.

Bodyweight Exercises

1. Wall Stand

This exercise does not train any muscles, but it helps you develop the habit of maintaining proper posture. It is especially effective at an age when the spine is not fully developed, that is, up to 20 years old. The essence of the exercise is as follows: You need to press against the wall with four body parts: the back of your head, both shoulders, buttocks, and heels. The video shows that you should also press with your shins, but this is not mandatory. Interestingly, it's not necessary to press with your heels either; if it's uncomfortable, you can keep them a few centimeters away from the wall.

In this position, you should stand for one minute each day in the morning and evening. Naturally, to press with both shoulders, you must expand your chest and squeeze the shoulder blades together. This is the essence of the exercise. If you do it correctly, there should be enough space between your lower back and the wall to slide a hand through. Or even a leg! 😊

2. Hyperextension (Bending Over a Horse) Lying on the Floor (Boat Pose)

This exercise is a variation of a regular hyperextension. It is interesting to us because it teaches better back arching than the regular hyperextension. Additionally, you don't need any machines or equipment for this exercise. When performing this exercise, you should squeeze the shoulder blades together and expand the chest. Position your arms according to how challenging you find this exercise. You can do this exercise every day.

Very effective exercise. And very challenging. Challenging not only physically but also technically. If you hunch over while doing this pull-up, it's better not to do it at all. That's how most people do it. The shoulder blades should be squeezed together, and you should go up and down in a straight line – without tilting your head. Otherwise, such pull-ups will not improve your posture. This exercise trains the latissimus dorsi and the rear deltoid muscles.

The advantage of these pull-ups is that even girls and skinny people can do them. And the effectiveness in terms of muscle training and posture is almost the same as with the previous pull-ups. If it's too hard for you, bend your legs to make the exercise easier. You can also try doing it with an underhand grip. It's easier to engage your back this way.

Exercises with Dumbbells

This exercise trains the rear deltoid and the muscles surrounding the shoulder blades. With each arm swing, you need to squeeze the shoulder blades together while arching your back. The effectiveness in terms of muscle building is low, but it does have an impact on posture.

Technically, this is quite a complex exercise. If you just pull without arching your back and without squeezing the shoulder blades, your arms will mainly do the work. But we need the back. If done correctly, the entire upper back will be engaged.

Cable Machine Exercises

This exercise is an analog of lateral dumbbell raises. The idea is to tone the muscles of the upper central part of the back. The stronger the tone of these muscles, the straighter your posture will be. Such machines are not available in every gym. It can be replaced with lateral raises using cables.

This exercise mimics pull-ups behind the head. Again, if you cannot perform this exercise upright and without hunching over, it's better not to do it at all. You need to keep your head straight and not tilt it, while squeezing the shoulder blades together. This requires a certain flexibility in the shoulder girdle. In cases of severe hunchback, few can do this pull correctly.

This is analogous to dumbbell rows and pull-ups on the Smith machine. For posture, it's better to keep the back not static but to lean back slightly with the handle and pull the back while pulling towards you. In general, as shown in the video, you can even lean back a bit more.

The essence is the same as in the previous exercise. The only difference is that you can do it with one hand. But for posture, it's better not to do it this way. For posture, it's better to perform all exercises with both hands simultaneously. This better engages the central muscles of the back. Like with the previous exercise, don’t keep your back static.

Conclusions

1. I’ll emphasize again that during all these exercises you must arch your back, squeeze the shoulder blades together, and pull your shoulders back. Otherwise, these exercises won’t help you correct your posture.

2. It’s not necessary to do all of them. However, you can do them all. For example, you can choose one exercise from numbers 5 and 7. It is also sufficient to do one exercise from numbers 4 and 6, and from numbers 9 and 10.

3. You need to stand against the wall every day. The other exercises can be split in half and done twice a week. One week do one part of the exercises, the other week do the other.

4. In general, all exercises that train the back muscles have some effect on posture to varying degrees. I simply selected 10 that, in my opinion, do this better than others.

5. The younger and more flexible you are, the more effective these will be. But even if you're old and stiff, at least you can develop a habit and tone your muscles. And this, judging by what I mentioned at the beginning of the article, is 50% of success. That’s not too little, and it will be visually noticeable. Good luck!