How does our environment affect our habit practice?

The posture habits build up, week by week. And just like our balance practice, our posture practice improves imperceptibly, but improves, nonetheless.

This week for a change, let's look at the times when we are neither practising our habit of the week nor doing exercise.  

Does the chair you are sitting in right now contribute to or impede your posture habit?
When you sit in a chair, is your behind behind you or is  tail tucked under?
When you walk through a storm do you hold your head up high?  Just checking to see if you are awake.....and below is a link to a great video clip 

You can modify your furniture with cushions or a towel so that your spine is lengthened, and not collapsed. For example, at the end of the day,* if I am relaxing in the lounge I need two cushions to elongate my spine while I lean back and a footrest to stop me sliding downwards. It works for me. Now, how about you?  Can you choose a better seat for yourself at the dining table or lounge?

Secondly, you can modify the way you sit or stand, for that matter. When the spine is stretched long and all our "building blocks" are stacked up, circulation of the blood and lymph system can flow freely, like a gentle massage.  

Bravo to you when you do your posture Habit of the Week, 100 times a day.  The body does adapt to the load we give it. However, let's not undo all that good stuff by slumping in the chair....
The wind will change and you'll stay that way........

*"At the end of the day there's a golden sky" here is the link:-

You'll never walk alone. Captain Tom Moore walked to raise money for the UK's NHS




  

Lift Up Your Hearts - Habit of the week - HOW

This week we are lifting up the top part of our chest.  This makes the correct positioning a breeze - especially of the head and neck. 

This habit might just be a mood-changer, too.  Our mind can affect our body posture and the reverse is true.  Our body can have a positive influence on our state of mind - or a negative influence. It is part of our language - Don't be downhearted, how about downcast?. Alternatively we say, put a spring in your step.

An example of this wonder occurs when we fake a smile.  If we put your face into a smile position, say, by putting a pencil in our mouths sideways. Please allow the ends of the pencil to be outside your mouth.  The pencil causes this big smile.  It is not a sincere smile.  Afterwards, people report feeling better.  

So when we intentionally lift up our hearts our mood could lift as well.  

Arms behind your upper body

Here is a blog from 2015... 

 "I was watching one of the marvel comic Avenger films and there was Scarlett Johanssen in her black leather costume.  I noticed that at all times her upper arms were behind her body, no matter what she was doing.  Check out the movies for yourself sometime.
So switch on those "Scarlett" arms.  It looks great.  It helps line up the posture.  This week's habit, a postural cue, put your elbows behind your body and have Scarlett arms"

To update this with an idea from the Primal posture course that I did in Tasmania this year.

Roll each shoulder back in position, one at a time. Then turn your upper arms outwards.

Notice how this aligns and lifts your body.

A radio documentary - the Trouble with Beauty

I listened to "the Trouble with Beauty" a radio documentary. 
Do you remember the song "The first time ever I saw your face" ? They interviewed, at length, the lady for whom that song was written, Peggy Seger

As well, they discussed all aspects of beauty.  

I am going to summarise.

Gabby Weinhausen hierarchy of beauty

Start with posture.  while taking the steps to correct your own posture, you feel more beautiful.

Second   - level of animation

Thirdly - facial expression. "I've got one word for you Kimmie"  Resting b@**h face

Anyway, here is the link to the documentary - Presenter  Lea Redfern, Produced Edwina Scott

https://www.abc.net.au/radionational/programs/world-docos/the-trouble-with-beauty/12197946

Pull your posture up - from your bootstraps Habit of the week HOW

We have three arches in each foot. We can lose touch with those arches for many  reasons.  Our lovely shoes, soft carpeted floors, sitting all day may lead to lack of use of the arches of our feet. By the way, if you want to try the activity, it is helpful to take your shoes off.
We can re-ignite those arches by making our foot into a kidney bean-shape. Here is how. 

First, let's focus on the right foot. 

Start with your feet parallel, then shift the weight forward onto the ball of your foot
Keep the weight there and swivel your heal inwards a little.
Feel the tension through the foot and the lower leg.

Repeat on the left foot.

Now both.
Feel free to relax those muscles, between practices: - stamping your feet or marching on the spot will get blood flowing. 

Have another go
Sense how these activated muscles boost our posture.  Our strength and power radiate upwards, assisting all our postural cues.  

So arches switch on, 
Draw up the golden thread
Open the upper chest triangle, spread your dots
Melt your shoulders down the back
Angle the chin downward with a lengthened neck.

To picture a kidney bean-shaped foot, think, of a chubby baby's foot, or a grizzly bear's foot.
As easier starting place - curling your toes under - that will give you the vibe.