When you embark on a system of exercises to improve posture, it might be frustrating at first. It is very common to expect a lot out of your own body. We want fast results, and we can hurt ourselves if we are not careful.
But if you keep incorporating these virtues into your practice, you will reap many benefits. You can make the exercises more effective, reduce your risk of getting hurt, and feel more contented with your practice. In this article, I will detail four important virtues that will help you deepen your practice. These virtues are usually present in yoga and tai chi, but we'll make use of them here, too.
1. Patience
The first week or two of a new exercise routine usually give you big results. You're working new muscles in new ways, so your muscle adapts relatively quickly. But soon you reach your muscle's capacity to change quickly, and you must slowly and persistently exercise it to see any gains. This can take time. The same works for your posture. You will see big gains at first, but then you must be patient and do the exercises correctly and consistently. Over time, you will notice an improvement in how you hold yourself up. So keep at it.
2. Modesty
We tend to overestimate our ability to recover from a workout. It is especially important when we are dealing with the spine and tendons. You shouldn't take a spinal or tendon injury lightly. Having a healthy, pain-free spine is important to your well-being.
Also, your tendons and ligaments are also very fragile. They can only stretch a little bit. After stretching only 4% of its length, they begin to tear. So don't stretch too far. When your muscles start to twitch, you should hold it there, not further. You twitch because your muscles receive a signal from the tendon to keep from stretching too far.
3. Awareness
Often, we don't pay attention when we exercise. We might watch TV when we are on the bike. Or listen to music while we run through the park. This might help you lose weight, but it doesn't help you learn about your body habits. How you carry yourself throughout the day is vitally important not only to your posture, but to your health in general. If you can't pay attention when you are using your body in as physical an activity as working out, how can you expect to know when you are sitting in an awkward and painful position?
4. Grace
A certain elegance helps any movement. Try to find the grace in whatever movement you are doing. Your exercises represent what you want to be. How you hold your posture symbolizes how you feel. Exercise with with your intention in mind. Let your purpose be present during each workout.
These virtues can help you in your practice to improve posture and in your everyday life. They help deepen a connection with your body and with your environment. A good posture exercise program will touch on this kind of non-physical side to exercise and life. These principles are essential to making your posture practice lead you to great posture and vibrant health.
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