All I ever wanted to do as a child was to play sports.
I was far from a naturally gifted athlete.
I was born with internally rotated legs. I had to wear foot gear when I slept as a child that consisted of two shoes with a bar inbetween them. It was a fixed position and the theory was that it would correct my legs.
It didn’t.
I would wake up in pain.
I would leave school in pain.
I took long warm baths every day to soothe the pain.
When I was four, I had surgery at Sick kids hospital to fix my hernia.
I am sure this wasn’t easy to watch for my parents.
Being a father now, I couldn’t imagine what went through my parents mind with a child who was always in and out of the hospital.
My eldest brother would stay up all night until my mother would come home and ask how I was.
My grandfather would pray rentlessly for me.
I felt like I never belonged.
I was thirty four when my body finally broke beyond repair.
I never understood why I had all these issues until I finally picked up a book on pilates.
Although I worked out as a teen and became very strong. I was always rounded in my upper back and had a forward head position.
My posture was a kyphotic posture.
This is defined as having an increased curve of the thoracic spine ( Jane Johnston, “postural correction”, pg 78)
Hyperkyphosis is defined as having a kyphotic angle greater than 40%.
Unfortunately for those who were born with this spinal deviation or through injuries, habits or just life in general they could be living with thoracic back pain, restricted range of spinal motion, functional limitation, respiratory compromise and osteoporotic fractures.
All these conditions make it hard to A) perform efficiently as an athlete B) perform daily life tasks efficiently C) have clothes fit properly 😉
I would even go as far as to say from my own personal experience, concentrate properly, project my voice clearly, breathe efficiently and check my blindspot while on the roads.
In the same book written by Jane she also has a Table on page 25 that has postures correlated with two aspects of personalities that came from a study from a group of 100 participants. The personalities: Extrovert and Introvert. Not suprisingly for myself people who are kyphotic were 17% classified as extroverts while 83% classified as introverts. Ideal posture was 96% extroverted while 4%percent Introverted.
I love being an introvert. I love reading, deep conversations, quiet and calm spaces and being out in nature. As I have corrected my posture I have noticed that I am way more free to express myself and put myself out there. Hence this blog and starting up this studio, things that maybe an extrovert would do. Regardless of personality type, I am more about sharing my knowledge of how to enjoy sports more, enjoy nature and nourish healthy and loving relationships (which doesn’t always mean telling people what they want to hear).You can be kind and direct and still love people.
Anywho, back to kyphosis.
Things I noticed after I corrected my alignment seem subtle but I would say perspective shifting.
Walking upright meant I didn’t walk staring down at the ground anymore, I had to look at people in the eyes. Something that took time getting used to.
Reading became unbearable unless I was reading something at eye level. Yoga blocks came in handy to prop my computer up to a higher level.
I went down a size in clothes. Crew necks were more comfortable, although I still like my v neck t shirts.
Laying down on the couch and watching tv with a pillow underneath tires me out. I use a tripod now when I read, watch videos or teach online.
I prefer hard chairs to soft ones and dislike the backs of chairs.
I hate to sit.
I have much more energy and my focus is pretty on point.
I really appreciate architecture and lines. This is very true for the human body as well. If you read back far enough you may even read up that mathematics came from the human body.
This is why it is vital to learn about the ideal plumbline for posture.
If you begin to understand the plumbline in the human body, you can begin to understand the muscle imbalances associated with this type of posture. If you enjoy being kyphotic, roll with it. If you would like to shift your perspective to know the steps you need to take to correct it, keep reading and maybe reach out.