All right I admit I sleep on my side, and even my stomach occasionally, but never on my back...'til now.
Ever since I've been paying attention to it, I've noticed my spine has a curve in it that just won't go away. And my shoulders slump forward and my hips aren't straight. Frequently as a child (and even occasionally as an adult) my mom would sneak up behind me and grab my shoulders with her fingers and then stick her thumbs on either side of my spine, all the while chiding me to “Stand up straight, Jessica!” This would force me to pull my shoulders back and arch my spine awkwardly. I would walk like this for about 10 seconds until it wasn't the first thing on my mind and immediately my shoulders would relax into their slumped position.
In discussing my posture the other day, my husband had a revelation: “Have you ever noticed that the way you sleep is the same way you stand? When you sleep on your side, you shoulders roll forward and your spine curves. Maybe you should try sleeping on your back.”
Hmmm...he was right on about my posture. It also explains why my hips and shoulder blades aren't even. Even when I sleep on my stomach, I roll my shoulders forward and cock my neck. Bodies are efficient machines, much like the people that inhabit them, they are constantly trying to get the most out of the least amount of effort. I spend a third of my day sleeping (or at least I should). When I train my body that it is most relaxed in that position, it stands to reason that it would revert to that when I'm awake and not so relaxed.
So begins my experiment: 30 days of sleeping on my back. I'm interested how it will effect my posture. I'll post a before picture and we'll see how it goes.
No comments:
Post a Comment