Is “Good Posture” the Best Posture?
Sit up straight, shoulders back, chin tucked, don’t hunch.
Most of us grew up with some version of this, and the fitness industry has been happy to keep it going.
There are entire programmes built around “fixing” posture, as though there’s one correct position the body should be in, and everything else is a problem to solve.
But what if: Our body isn’t designed to hold a position, but instead it’s designed to move through positions.
What we call “good posture” is just one point on a continuum, and the issue isn’t usually which position someone is in, it’s how long they stay there and how many other positions they have access to.
If we have lots of movement options, if we can flex and extend, rotate and reach, load and unload across a full range without restriction, we’re more resilient because we’re not stuck in any particular position.
When we lose range in one area, the rest of the system compensates.
Tightness in the thoracic spine (the middle of your back) means the lower back, hips or neck take more rotation than it’s built for.
We’ll always find a way to move where we need to, but it may come from overloading areas that weren’t meant to carry that demand.
That’s how chronic tension patterns or ‘niggles’ live, not in the position itself but the lack of alternatives to it.
And winter can make this more visible.
We generally move less and spend more time in a narrow range of positions, and start to feel tight or stiff because we stop exploring certain movements and positions.
So instead of chasing better posture, ask: how many positions can I move through comfortably, and where are the gaps?
This might change how train and why.
