Why "Standing Tall With Shoulders Back" Is The WORST Posture Cue - Do This Instead!

[@conorharris]

Thanks for watching, everyone! If you want more help with this issue (and many similar postural/movement problems), check out my Beginner Body Restoration Program: go.conorharris.com/bbr-beginner-body-restoration - If you want one-on-one help, check this out to work with us online: www.conorharris.com/online-training

[@2MinuteHockey]

heal striking is proper walking form? i have heard otherwise

[@nicholas50]

So to clarify please, (I'm a bit confused) on that first exercise: Are you supposed to keep your tailbone elevated off the ground the WHOLE time or lower it back down on the ground in between breaths? How is that supposed to work exactly? Thank you, Conor.

[@Bergerons_Review]

"Push the ceiling with the top of your head" that's what my mother always told me.

[@RadagastBrown420]

Donald Trump Jr needs to watch this video.

[@vortraz2054]

My guy who fucking cares about appearing taller focus on the health facts. Those comments dont help its a little weird. Thanks for everything else tho cheers

[@Z.O.M.G]

I love how every posture video tells me something different, it really gives me confidence that I'll fix my posture

[@3aebucKanaL]

Is it sarcasm?

[@Z.O.M.G]

@@3aebucKanaL yeah, I was actually very frustrated

[@emanuel5880]

This one actually worked for me

[@o_manam]

Hahaha no kidding, also seeing this. I guess we'll try them all.

[@Savannah-xx3zk]

I feel your frustration

[@snakejazz]

To be fair, "standing tall with your shoulders back" isn't a resting or idle posture, it's more of a presence posture. Great video! My mom is a PT and always reminds me about pelvic tilting.

[@snakejazz]

@@LeGiTKnifeZ physical therapist

[@edwardblackhanded3285]

I have a standing tall with shoulder back as my main posture. Maybe for the most its hard, i dont now why caz im all my life walk like that.

[@salvinomacedo]

@@LeGiTKnifeZ Partido dos Trabalhadores

[@romanchavez5408]

Exactly, I use it to just kinda correct myself from time to time. When standing for periods of time. Anyone that keeps this posture quickly learns it’s not meant to be held.

[@snakejazz]

@@edwardblackhanded3285 Everybody is different with different genetics and proneness to certain injuries or lack thereof. Most people actually struggle to perform (and contract for a time duration) a pelvic tilt because they've barely done it before and don't really know how to flex the abdominal muscles separately to engage, and if you try it out you'll actually notice you give off the illusion that you're taller by doing so. Perfecting the pelvic tilt takes practice and muscle memory and your posture will look a lot better if you do. People walk with more of an S-curve naturally I think because that's what sort of "appears or feels normal" even though it technically shouldn't be so exaggerated. I actually know of a girl who purposely walked with such a sharply curved S in her spine, specifically so she walked with her butt out more--and that ended up giving her major back issues later in her life.

[@5stardave]

Back in the '60s and '70s when I was growing up, the standing up straight and putting your shoulders back for better "posture" was never meant as an all day thing. It was an anti-slouching and meeting someone pose. Similar to what other mammals do when encountering another animal. It was always more psychological than physical.

[@lauriivey7801]

Agreed ... this was how you 'displayed' ... I am 60yo, have never slouched, always sit straight up (not leaning back on the chair), and have the core strength of a 20yo ... Standing straight gives the impression that you have confidence

[@cagneybillingsley2165]

i see manlets doing that, i just laugh at them. just stand straight, stupid

[@SeanLives]

​@@lauriivey7801I bet you hold your phone directly in front of you at arm's length too

[@lauriivey7801]

@@SeanLives Nope, unfortunately you lose that bet

[@JoeM1314]

@@lauriivey7801 I think he was saying that you needed to hold the phone ridiculously to maintain straight posture. Which is true, phones aren't made for good posture

[@harshbutfair8993]

I'm 2 minutes in and no memes. A health and fitness channel without memes or annoying background music, what a refreshing change. Hope all your vids are the same. Subscribed!

[@MCM214]

They are the same pure content. The absolute best channel!

[@marcel5430]

The one you’re watching rn hasn’t been infected by the gen z attention retention frenzy. This guy is just pure passion and knowledge.

[@stelixhyx808]

i just wanna know how to actually stand but he keeps explaining lol. Kinda busy so would prefer youtubers to just start with the main bit then elaborate.

[@ct-gt2dt]

Bot comment?? Genuinely curious. Yeah just 20 minutes of spine explanation………what a refreshing change…….. Guy is literally giving his own opinions on what posture should be about before actual advice. Refreshing huh?

[@Michael_Page]

yeah, this advice is going to make my posture better than last time

[@smokeymoe842]

People have complimented my correct posture which I've had to consciously train. You are correct in everything you say, when I forced my shoulders back, chest forward I'd feel lower back pain. What really helped my was my chin\head tilt. Many of us walk around looking down, maybe from phone use. Chin up not only gives you a confident stance it feels right. Just my 2cents

[@linnen_elm]

not in 3rd world countries- you tryinna looking up good and majesty you gonna plant your face on the floor real soon. looking down to watch your step- it's a constant switching between floor and the front that will get you survive around here. else gonna get hit by some drunk driver had you not preparing your reaction time.

[@OverRule1]

I'll take one of those cents

[@igotdembombs]

From phone use? The ground is covered in bullshit, gotta make sure im not stepping in it.

[@nesamdoom]

I'd always look down before smartphones and stuff. I have always had habitual tripping over stuff. but exercise and sport naturally stacked me into a more upright and I also learned to pay more attention to scan distance in front of me.

[@tswagg504]

I think you’re right..I’ve always had forward head posture and I have long suspected that it might be the reason for my lower back pain…the human head is the weight of some bowling balls, and all that weight is pulling down your torso forward

[@JoshsMusicChannel]

Been dealing with painful Sciatica (back pain with nerve pain down the leg) for the past few months. After watching a ton of videos I found out that most people get it due to bad posture. Two months of core exercises and stretches later, still in intense pain. This videos breathing exercises eliminated the pain almost immediately. Anyone suffering from sciatica needs to see this video, it might be the one thing that stops the pain for you, too.

[@DefeatLust]

Wow, i'm dealing with this for the past few months. It has been seriously painful. Ty for the hope. Ima stop procastinating on this video

[@BrodeyDoverosx]

You should also look at back mechanic.

[@zHealthy]

I got better with core exercises mainly. And a lot of stretching, doin' daily in the morning was also doin massage on the nerve pain and I got better in couple of months.

[@FyurianPrime]

It's "bad posture" related, in regard to weak lower back/glute muscles and pelvic tilt. Exercises that work on those areas have the best results in improving/maintaining those areas, whilst raising your leg up and holding it into your chest has a more immediate effect on the pain being caused.

[@riverrich7929]

There's a magnificent book called "Healing Back Pain" written by Dr. John Sarno.

[@RobYu]

Appreciate the context and background info! I noticed some comments requesting less of that and thought it worth weighing in that you have viewers who find your style helpful.

[@siriushp0904]

I love that literally anyone can do this no matter age/size/athleticism. Thank you for the great video!

[@Fredman5551]

Just adding this: I've found that my posture gets fixed when I take a DEEP breath, expanding my chest out with the breath as much as i can. Nothing forced but just letting my body do what it does when my lungs are full. I hold it, become familiar with how my shoulders and neck are sitting, my hips,, etc then slowly exhale. So If I ever find myself slouching: deep breath, hold, reset.

[@jayceewedmak9524]

Nice! Thanks!

[@Sparkitye]

You’re not suppose to breath from your chest but your stomach

[@Fredman5551]

@@Sparkitye while I understand you watched that clip from the Joe rogan podcast on KZbin shorts, and feel the urge to share. Understand thats not the point of my comment.

[@kornelobajdin5889]

​@@Sparkityeyeah true, I kind of have the posture explained in this video. My back is relaxed and stomach is bigger. Because I breath air in it, it almost looks as If Im fat or something but If I breathe out I can squeeze them abs. I tried those gym postures, especially the part for the spine, it feels not conformable. Why would I push my back back to squeeze my stomach so its flatter. Its bound to be painful after long time. Now If I remember correctly I used to have those back pains before because I did kind of use that posture. Now I dont care, I just walk around relaxed, no need to do this unless you want presence in front of people.

[@AdventuresAwait123]

I like this

[@mariahhermann4495]

such a helpful video, thank you!!! i’ve been going to PT for my posture, because “standing up straight” HURTS to the point of numbness and tingling down my appendages! i’ve been telling my therapist for a month now how much more pain i’m in since i’ve started, and she doesn’t seem to listen or change anything we are doing. i started becoming more conscious of my pelvis, and tucking it in more forward, and i am amazed at how much more sturdy i feel, and how much less pain it causes in my thoracic area!!! mind blowing…i’ll be bringing this up to my therapist next week for sure!! thank you again!

[@RekkabAlaaDinTube]

Believe me guys Conor is the best physical therapist i have ever seen in my life , he address the problems exactly with all the details as they're that's amazing ❤️ greetings from Algeria 🇩🇿

[@kenji5055]

This works , I was a victim of this so called "good posture" myself until recently When I started experiencing pain in my spine , And I did what Conor said with no knowledge at all thinking it made sense and to my surprise after watching this video it does work . People working out to improve their posture always fall into this trap thinking their posture is good when all they're doing is damaging their spine.

[@sizzlacapleton1]

Let me find out Conner is a master teacher in the art of body function and movement....... Your video was well presented and narrated....... The visualization of said movements corresponded well with the narration of procedures........ AWESOME!..... ✊🏿💯

[@skaterknight1]

This video is a life saver. Years of trying to achieve good posture was actually so counterintuitive, so I am so glad I have found this video!

[@LucasSilva-gd3uv]

Have you done both exercises and for how long and when did you start see improvements in your posture?

[@addisonpuffpaff7201]

I didn’t even realize my pelvic tilts directly towards the ground until this video… I’m 20 and 6’7 I’ve heard stand straight my entire life and it’s ruined my pelvis direction. Didn’t even realize the pain it was causing. Thank you

[@Sheena1234ization]

Real

[@Toomuchfakeinthisworld]

Literally all your videos I find address the specific issues I’ve been having. Your a blessing my dude.

[@socialwhiskeybandit]

Great video, I teach ballet and the pinched shoulders/flared ribs/anterior pelvic tilt is usually people's response when they get the correction to stand tall/have good posture, for both kids and adults. Obviously this is really limiting for the range of movement you try to get out of ballet (plus, ouch on the back when you land jumps that way). When I first started teaching I switched to an analogy of trying to see over a tall fence, accompanied by explanations of trying to avoid rib flare/anterior pelvic tilt. In my experience it has a higher hit rate getting people to lift themselves properly, since you really can't see over a tall fence very well if you're effectively arching yourself backwards.

[@korey3751]

thanks

[@coachcartier8726]

Trying to see over a tall fence was a major takeaway, thanks for your comment❤

[@Rosannasfriend]

Can’t wait to hear this one, because I really need this information about improving my posture.

[@dustlicker3]

@B. Tisdale “i didnt wanna be the first one to say it but..” proceeds not to say it 🗿

[@JonnyKozoom]

So glad I found this channel. Noone has content on posture that is even remotely similar to Conors. I did the lying exercise and got instant pain relief in my hip for the first time in years. Truly amazing and I hope you keep up the good work. Most undersubscribed channel on youtube, but with content like that it can only blow up.

[@Poeme340]

As an old fella, I find that simply walking at a moderate pace allows the body to slowly find its natural posture. With arthritis, bulging discs and stenosis it seems that when I stretch to far forward or back I literally get stuck in that position. Thanks for the “balancing” advice!👍

[@TheGintama86]

Ya u just have weakness in some of ur joints and muscles theres band exercises u can do to strengthen them

[@jalakarvad]

Nice video. I've been working with posture for two years now. Whats most important he said is that you have to get posture habits to subconsciousness. You must practice 24/7 all your posture cues consciously, not only on training mat. How you walk?How you sit?How you lift? How you sleep? How you eat? There is right technique for everything. Be present and watch your mechanics and listen to your body. Work smart, make everthing easier for your body, dont strain it. To find right cues search for Alexander technique. After some time your body automates all the practiced things. But there is some danger if you have wrong cues. Its not easy, at all. One thing I have discovered is that wording your cues means alot. "Pushing" causes compression and tightness for me. "Pulling" works better for me. For example lie on your back and pull your pubic bone to your sternum. What happens? What was the command before? To get good results with posture you have to relearn how to move your middle area. Find pelvic clock exercise. Learn how to extend hip without tilting your pelvis. Try warrior poses from yoga, dont tilt your pelvis for deeper poses. If you tilt your pelvis for more range of motion then your hips wont open up. Most importaint is to work with your head. Dont lift your chin up. Light double chin feeling or gentle nod is better. Check your neck, maybe you cant keep your head over ribcage. Do neckexercises and visit chiropractor. Wrong head posture gives you dizziness, energy loss, depression, hand tingling, sleepiness. Anyway good luck with posture. Remember its lifetime project. Its a marathon. There is no rush!

[@BrodeyDoverosx]

Dude. I lost the ability to “self organize” posture after chronic pain and injuries. These two exercises are great, I’ll be doing them on the regular

[@jmc8076]

Compensation. Happens after years of chronic lower body pain. Good daily body mechanics and intentional movement is key. Takes time so be very patient. Small even tiny but consistent changes are most effective and lasting. Best of luck.

[@locomojoboy2]

“Stand up straight with your shoulders back” is literally what I’ve been told to do to correct my posture lol

[@bangerslotwell1796]

Don't listen to Jordan Peterson anymore

[@realknight170]

@@bangerslotwell1796 standing up straight with your shoulders back is more of a presence posture, useful at social interactions. but if you're going to sit for some time infront of a computer for example, that wouldn't be so useful. it's more about efficiency. also, clean your room.

[@jrg305]

It is correct cue for most people. This is a gotcha clickbait title. I have always done the chest out thing my whole life and never had issues. I went to a chiro who told me this guys stuff, that I was overcorrecting, and I got a shoulder injury and lost a lot of chest muscle mass that took 2-3 years to fully recover from without surgery. Chest out and shoulders back and down is correct cueing for bench press and dips. It also corrects slouch posture that most of the non personal training working culture that sits behind a computer all day has. This video might be for a small percentage with Ocpd or OCD. The concept of "rib flare" was never a thing before like 2020. There is nothing new under the sun. The fitness community will come up with another thing to make you buy a program or sell a lifestyle trick. It is just like the fad diet community. Squeeze your butt, neutral spine, shoulders back and down, tall neck is healthy. Use your back muscles don't let it always just rest on the disks. Forward pulling muscles will just pull you into bad posture if you don't do that and then you get even worse pain.

[@jacobhaggerty7401]

​@@bangerslotwell1796 clean your room brother.

[@bbpoisonn]

@@jacobhaggerty7401 yikes

[@tonymanuge1932]

So far, every one of your videos I have watched has been applicable to my situation. After being given the same exercises for 12 years with very little effect, I have been following your exercises for pelvic tilt and compressed rib cage. 15 days and what a difference it made so far. I was also glad to see the video on the testing for feet and cervical as cervical is most definitely part of my story. The first video of your I watched was on Psoas. Since I started those exercise psoas minor has been complaining a lot but IT band, hip, lumbar, and lower thoracic on the same side have been very quiet. I would love to spend some time with you one on one. My brother found you as well and he feels the same ;) Thanks for sharing all of this very powerful information!

[@conorharris]

That’s fantastic to hear, Tony! Thanks for letting me know I’ve been able to help you both

[@markb4631]

Awesome video! Super informative and I love the way you explain it to us common people with the skeleton model. Also really like how you show what the common mistakes are and what to not do. Thanks again for another great video! I feel like these are custom made for me a lot of the time. Much appreciated and keep up the amazing work sir!

[@conorharris]

Thanks Mark :)

[@wilsonov87]

Wow, that was really useful information I have not come across before. These exercises in your video gave me such immediate relief that I know I was causing, or at least greatly adding to, my recent increasing shoulder pain. May you and all your children be blessed!

[@Duskmelt]

Heel striking when walking is a modern adaptation to being shod though. That in itself may lead to long-term knee issues.

[@abdelrahmannour3450]

This video is one month all, so no one will see this, but man, your explanation / tutoring is seriously world class

[@gregstiles3024]

Thanks Conner! This one video just changed my entire philosophy. This explains clearly why I wasn't making progress. A real blessing.

[@UnluckyJester]

It wasn't until this year of my life, now 27. Almost 6 years after leaving my dojo that I realized that the years of martial arts "feet together, hands by your side, shoulders back and chin up" the que to line up and stand tall in class is what I believe created my anterior pelvic tilt that has plagued my lower back, tight hips and unstable glute floor. It's so difficult to retrain my natural stance while standing or doing most activities. Thanks for doing what you can to teach this to those who need it

[@MajorKaoss]

I was in the Marine Corps for over twenty years. Early on in Officer Candidate School - like the first ten minutes - we were "molded" to walk like Marines. Erect, eyes on the horizon and with an attitude. No one went through the biomechanical aspects of what we were doing we just emulated our instructors. I have walked "erect" since my early twenties and often been told that I have good posture. As I approach 70 I still walk the same way without any problems along the way. I have maintained strong abdominals which I'm sure helps, and I still feel like I'm in my twenties. Marines have attitude by design and part of that is how we present ourselves to the world. I know you have a background in the mechanical aspect of posture but does the psychology of a person play into the equation. I would humbly - bwaa - say yes.

[@brendanschroeder1862]

I would agree with this, tho it seems that different ethnicities have their own respective postures. If you look at most tribal peoples, that stand straight up and down and have the best fitness anyone has seen.

[@lococomrade3488]

​@@brendanschroeder1862 Welp, that was racist as fuck.

[@cognitivedissonancecamp6326]

Very excellent speaker. I adopted the tai chi method of envisioning a string attached to the top of my head and it's pulling up and it allows my sternum and chin to stack in the same way you're speaking about of the ribs centering over the pelvis. Doing planks on the floor where you extend your elbows into the floor and flatten your back really is excellent for get a nice warm loose feeling after sitting or having to focus for long periods. Thanks for the Vid, going to try these.

[@radiatingloveandforgiveness]

So I was convinced once again that you just need to practice yoga regularly and you wouldn't have any health issues

[@cognitivedissonancecamp6326]

@@radiatingloveandforgiveness Yoga is an amazing self practice. If you got into the habit of doing a practice then perhaps this sort of technique seems redundant.

[@kathydobbs9850]

I was taught standing tall the same way. It wasn’t a tai chi technique. I’m hoping to try tai chi soon. It’s very beneficial I’ve heard.

[@kathydobbs9850]

@@radiatingloveandforgiveness yoga can create issues by keeping in a hyper extended position too long. It may create laxity of ligaments/ tendons. Unfortunately yoga isn’t a catch all avoiding health issues, cant change our genes.

[@MarcusX01]

Serratus planks you mean?

[@Nathanator]

Absolutely true. I used to slouch and used this cue for months, and now I have flared ribs, which I only realized a few days ago. I had assumed that my flared ribs posture was normal and that I just had a large ribcage until then, and I ended up injuring my back doing lat pulldowns with this posture, and I’ve had back pain for the past 2 months :/ Thanks for making this video, it was great advice and I hope it serves as a good warning for people

[@conorharris]

Glad it helps 🙂

[@dominatorkd]

This video and your video on diaphragmatic breathing really helped give me instant relief from stiffness and made breathing easier too. I can tell I've not been breathing correctly and had bad posture for a long time now. This is amazing. Thank you, Conor!

[@vytas5584]

Agreed! Ever since I stopped standing up straight my back and neck pain has gone away!

[@phant0mdummy]

Life sucks. Who would have thought it was this complicated to stand. To walk. To breathe. To sleep. Eat. Exercise. Etc. Yet all I've learned, over the years, is that I've been doing it all wrong.

[@eerokuopio7350]

Imagine when you do little adjustments how much better life can be. Although it can be overwhelming for a while when readjusting.

[@MexicanCrusader]

Oh boo hoo

[@berserker3778]

I feel the same way right now

[@punani_slayer4209]

Blame modern society. Having a sedentary lifestyle and eating shitty food does this to you

[@catgoaaaaaaaaaaa6152]

@@MexicanCrusader "oh boo hoo" -🧑‍💻

[@NadiraJamal]

I had a dance teacher who used to tell us to imagine that your ribcage and pelvis were a layer cake and say “don’t let your top layer slide off!” Our dance style has a lot of ribcage and pelvis articulations, but that always made it clear where “home base” was.

[@jeanine219]

Thank you so much for this hugely important and elusive education and information re the very foundation of where everything begins... correct posture, which is most often misunderstood even by the “experts”.

[@llllb2]

Just found your channel. I was in the military for 5 years and standing up "at attention" or parade rest for up to hours at a time developed alot of horrible postural cues. This led to some lumbar issues and horrible rib flare

[@shaan702]

Same! Standing at attention causes you pull your shoulders back, flare your ribs, and push your pelvis back. Parade rest is a lot more natural which is probably why it’s the resting position. I remember seeing mofos walking around on base like they were robots at attention all the time. They looked goofy af!

[@MALICEM12]

​@@shaan702 yeah, I don't know why they still force it.

[@morphius747]

We have determined Your injuries are not service related

[@lastcent5140]

honestly didnt realise military had done it to me for quite some time. always thought that it was the correct way

[@yuch1102]

I doubt you were put at attention for hours at a time. Also, the longest I stood at was parade rest for an hour and that was at like a battalion formation.

[@skip3662]

Connor, appreciate the video. I was super fit then in 2021 had a bad injury that laid me off, so I went from 5x days resistance training for 25 year to 0 for a full 12 months. I lost my core strength and then started to try to compensate by standing taller/shoulders back. Fast forward to today I feel flat in my thoracic, pain constantly in the TL junction, I feel so compressed front to back, food feels like it gets stuck, sternum keeps cracking, breathing sucks, cant seem to breath properly driving the car (assume positional), head comes forward, flared, ATP, feel like I am stuck in a sympathetic state, I cannot get breath into my back when upright, I look like a croissant (extended) and my chest has for sure lifted up. I am back at the gym hitting glutes, hammies,TVA & Obliques, I've spent thousands ! I follow all your videos'/ PRI exercises including the PEC/Patho PEC ones. Have you heard of folks being this uncomfortable before, would 3 / 6 months fix it ?

[@nickfranco2259]

Man, I feel you. Going through my own body issues. It's debilitating I'm just started pain academy a few months ago, but always on the search for other tips and inputs. It's a shit show.

[@conorharris]

I work with people all the time like you and there is hope. My best possible advice would be see someone in person who is trained in the same methodologies I am. Go to posturalrestoration.com and find a provider!

[@skip3662]

@@conorharris thanks Connor, only one here in Australia 🇦🇺, I flew up to him last week and working side by side to correct this. But knowing I am not alone in my symptoms is a huge relief, thanks for your reply, it’s appreciated

[@zombieluka]

@@pixelking2000 That's a wonderful idea, thanks for sharing!!

[@joylox]

Me who doesn't heel strike that often and has shoulders that slide forward too far if I don't stand back... Hypermobility and posture is a whole mess. Finding shoulder neutral with a subluxed shoulder wasn't working right, and now with a rib that doesn't quite sublux, but needs manual therapy, is a challenge. I did some of this stuff with a pelvic floor physio, but with multiple conditions (POTS/OI, hypermobility suspected hEDS), I've learned that it's really hard to find ways to exist without posture issues. The worst one is when people say to put feet flat on the floor, but if I do that with POTS, my feet turn red and often get cold, so when I'm not wearing boots, I usually sit on one foot to keep it warm and avoid pooling. I can't put my hands above my head long enough to do any of these as my hands get numb, so I just move around a lot. Unfortunately that moving around also happens in sleep, so I often wake up with something subluxed or stiff because I moved wrong at night. That's the next step for me and physio.

[@sharn5559]

You don't want to walk with your heel striking first. It causes knee damage from not utilising your calves

[@dirtydiggler9064]

Incredibly useful video. After being practically bedridden from age 22-27 due to compressed ribcage from OHPing 2 plates behind my head for years. Doctors said I had COPD but it was just tight muscles. I had no feeling or sensation anywhere throughout my body and was swollen and purple and black limbs for the whole 5 years while covered in ulcers. These stretches I incorporated from your video into my routine have helped a lot even just today. Thank you. Never go above normal ROM, always stretch, especially if you're hypermobile.

[@Do-Some-Change]

Your this video is gonna be the most beneficial for me than any other videos i ever watched .(This is Main Topic I had been seeking for)

[@noretreat_nosurrender6892]

another informative excellent video. Been watching your videos for some time and they have really helped me keep up the good work conor 👍

[@conorharris]

Thanks, will do! Good to hear that

[@emointel321]

Good stuff, Connor i think a video geared towards people with lumbar injuries would be helpful. A lot of pri want to orient the ribcage and the pelvis which is very important. Repositioning the ribs is crucial especially the left but the pelvis is tricky especially with long standing injury and chronic issues as flexion may be an issue. The 90/90 can be tricky because the flexion can exacerbate pain in certain individuals such as my self. Pri nails a lot of issues and patterns I personally have but implementing it without discomfort can be difficult at times.

[@mr.0474]

As a dog, this posture does not work for me.

[@lechatleblanc]

lmfao❤❤❤

[@kylewest8605]

😂

[@cdcervantes]

JC Denton, in the flesh

[@vincentprime740]

this is exact reason why our instinct in fighting/ punching stance is frontal back curve. you just literally get easier and quicker movement to the arm

[@eddiespencer5817]

Ok Conor Harris.. I can not tell you how important your work is to me personally and professionally. Here’s why.. I entered the fitness profession in the late 80s.. as a trainer.. when most clients we’re lifting too much weight.. and injuries resulted. Very early on.. I could see how this approach was moving many of these bodies.. into incorrect skeletal loading.. and muscle imbalances with dysfunctional.. even distorted movement patterns. My career path steered my research and coursework toward the more appropriate position reset approaches. I called it.. ‘stacking your bones’! ..to keep it serious and fun. I became well known in the fitness community on the Central Coast.. as the Posture Guru.. that thankfully brought a steady flow of clients that were finding this vertical load bearing.. to be important and the solution to much of the confusion they were having. Here’s my point.. I am 74.. and have independently developed many similar perspectives and training processes that you promote.. that is my version of all of this.. by blending education.. instinct.. and innovative client experiences. Conor! I am so thrilled that your work.. has upgraded.. refined.. and superseded my work.. in a way that is so much clearer.. more accurate.. and better explained.. that I connect with every video.. with the excitement that ‘this kid’ (Conor Harris!).. has got it! I mean all of it! From where I stand.. you are carrying this torch.. so much brighter.. and well presented.. that will serve your audience.. (and some of my audience.. since I direct many to your work!).. in an advanced and positively impactful way.. relative to what I found to be very effective in my days of innovating similar priorities. You are a very large stone.. pitched into a very large pond.. your expanding waves of impact.. will up level countless lives.. well beyond my time in service. Congratulations Conor! You matter in a huge way.. I salute you sir! Thank you for showing up.. namaste 🙏 ✨💜🎶🌈

[@amarparmar4996]

Amazing content as always Connor! I have a video request if you may. Possibly make a video about how to sit in a computer chair especially for 8 hours and reaching for a mouse and keyboard, as well as exercises that can be done while sitting in the chair for those of us working in open cubicles and want to get some exercises in?

[@gnarlock3927]

Vision probably plays a role in this too! I got some crappy prescription safety glasses as a welder and started to have pain after. When vision isn't working, the vestibular system isn't in balance and the body will compensate.. staring at the ground for balance got the body outta whack!

[@painterdawn2]

This could explain why I am always being asked to lift my chin in ballet class. I seem to want to look towards the floor. My everyday glasses are progressives. I may switch to my fixed focus glasses for ballet. Thanks for the idea!

[@Soccero07]

I swear, every video you release is exactly what i was just searching for!

[@adrianodsq]

OMG I just came back from a GPR appointment that she told me that I tilt my hip forward and that I probably put a lot of my weight on the front part of my feet! I never noticed but it blow my mind when I adjusted my pusture to put more weight on the back part! Glad to see someone helping to visualize it too! Thanks for the video!

[@carpenter155]

One of the key components to DDPYOGA is keeping your tailbone tucked while maintaining dynamic resistance throughout every movement. I do it every day I can tell you it will align your spine just standing still doing that and once you do the dynamic resistance yoga positions while maintaining a tucked tail bone, your body will release like you’ve never felt before- especially if you’re an athlete or coming from a sedentary lifestyle. It’s easier to keep them cheeks clenched than to keep the shoulders back 😅

[@denachea7533]

Conor always has all the answers to questions I’ve never asked.

[@TheLegendsmith]

I wish I could have shown this video to my father 20 years ago. Everyone in my family has horrible posture because he CONSTANTLY hammered this into us. I have terrible pelvic tilt due to this.

[@kishfoo]

I think both are very important. Extension and flexion. A light barbell held in the standing position of a deadlift. You hunch your neck, shoulders, and spine and roll down as far as you can go, then rill back up and end by puuling the shoulders back as far as they can go. Don't do it under injury, but only when you're in good spine condition. This full range of motion will work wonders.

[@Morghast]

Love you so much for this. This form is what my martial arts instructor showed me as the most Mechanically appropriate posture, according to the Chinese

[@westoncroye643]

Three exercises that I have noticed not only has allowed me more room to breath as it has opened my ribcage more and has helped a lot with posture is the 20 rep Breathing squat from the old silver era 1940’s bodybuilders superset with the breathing pullover combined with practicing the stomach vacuum. My posture’s has progressively gotten better with improved shoulder mobility, a larger ribcage to be able to breath more efficiently, better posture, a tighter core, and a bigger chest measurement (which includes the chest and lats). These are exercise that aren’t practiced anymore and after doing them for a little bit I can understand why, because they are hard exercises to perform. So far I have a 43-43.5 inch chest because of pullovers, my squat has significantly increased, and waist has shrunk significantly (since i suffer from diastasis recti) thus leading to much better posture.

[@JEsterCW]

I swear, I'm 27yo creative person mostly programming and i always try to sit healthy for many hours and didnt really feel any back pain or sum even once UNTIL i didnt try so many times to keep the "unnatural posture" i was thinking that im helping myself and my back be more healthy, but after sitting like this for even 15 minutes! I was starting to feel weird uncomfortable feeling in my lower back part, after an hour or so i was feeling pain and i couldn't sit anymore and i had to lay on my bed and i quickly realized that im not helping my back, but im hurting myself and my body by trying to be "healthy" then i stopped forcing my body and back to be like that im trying to do other things that are not forced. Im glad that ure spreading the knowledge about the unnatural posture cause it took me so long...like 2years at least to realize how bad it is 😅

[@Who-en2vo]

Definitely need to add this in to what I do... I have ehlers danlos and a lot of issues with my spine (well, everything) glad to find something that is low impact to strengthen core muscles

[@fitnesssoup7553]

I’ve been gaining an understanding for some time now that various “dysfunctions” are the result of neglect, conditioning and inferior/incompetent guidance. Dysfunctional habits and their consequences can be made better if not nearly entirely resolved. Get started and keep going!

[@redstonerg.8616]

I don’t understand why the shoulders back is a bad position to practice. My doctor advised me to stay in that position just 30 seconds each day and it really, along with 3 neck exercises, of equal length for each side, helped in relieving my neck pain. I actually find it easer to take a deep breath in this position and I don’t feel my pelvic bone going backwards. That being said, the exercise is not exactly just placing my trapezoids backwards but I also put effort in forcing them to not make me shrug while doing so (not letting my shoulders go upward) Also, I have to say that the exercise that you are leaning on your back really does wonders for you (a variation of it with rubber bands is what I do in my core sets)

[@keppela1]

Same. Pulling my shoulders back from their excessively forward position doesn't tilt my pelvis forward at all. This video honestly seems like a lot of nonsense.

[@Muphetballs]

You just said trapezoid, it's called a trapezius muscle, and a trapezoid is a shape. Also, why on earth would it be sane or reasonable to assume you know more than an entire board of physiotherapists. Your ability to understand and practice, as well as your opinion on what will help or happen to you, is based on NO EDUCATION. Just because you think it and it sounds right doesn't mean that you've been picked by God to spew that nonsense everywhere. Especially in denial of better practices

[@floatingbonesjournal]

Pilates talks about "neutral spine" -- the lumbar curvature. Not too much, and not too little. In a similar fashion, we should have "neutral [upper] arm rotation". We should not have our shoulders collapse forward in a state of pronation. We shouldn't be in an extreme state of supination-attention. I agree. OTOH, I think most Westerners are prone to pronate, and it's highly useful to shed a bit of that rotational bias. I do RMT ropes: moving a 1lb cloth/nylon rope moving laterally without ever jumping over the rope. This "Dragon Roll" move bounces in front of and behind the body; the goal is to have it bounce symmetrically at both points. Another part of the symmetry is to orbit the rope in both directions. 10-15 minutes a day gives you a fantastic balance between pronation and supination; it also gives you strength in both the pronators and supinators -- on both sides and in all directions. It also strengthens all of the hand flexors and extensors. Grip strength and opening jars has become way easier. I stand and sit taller -- and I never think about it. My CNS just *knows* how to do it. Win, win, win!

[@jewelweed6880]

It helps me to think of lifting my sternum up slightly like there's a rope attached to it up in the sky. That does a whole lot more for putting my shoulders back when I do this in conjunction with having my rib cage balanced over my hips. Does require a little engagement with your core muscles, something athletic people do without actively thinking about it but the average person really has to work on it.

[@imhungreee7645]

So happy to hear another opinion on posture!

[@FKProds]

I literally got myself into that messed up posture with over extending my pelvis because a sports person told me to stand with my shoulders back when I was young. In fairness, I think I was extremely anxious and walked around staring at the floor. I’m also barrel chested now. I’m really self conscious about it, and sometimes get so frustrated I try to straighten it by removing the S and it sends needles down my back. I’ll stop doing that, thanks.

[@Axecapoeiracomoxvalley]

Depends what you are doing for strength training. Not everyone has these problems if they were training to engage their core. People can develop strength from holding a good posture

[@danielmarinov3560]

Tuck your pelvis slightly and intentionally relax the pelvic floor, keep the tongue lightly pressed to the palette to support the face and neck(the tongue is one of the strongest and most important muscles in your body). Over time you'll start to distribute your weight evenly on your bones and directly to the soles of the feet and the ground. When grounded as such, the force of your bodyweight pushes back off the ground to the top of your head and beyond, naturally straightening out your spine, evenly spacing the vertebrae and the discs. The key is to relax and feel out your bones and tendons, let them carry your weight, it's what they do. This reduces the strain on the muscles, including the diaphragm, breathing becomes even and progressively deeper, down to the pelvic floor, which further relaxes the whole body and transmits even more weight/force to the earth and then back upward. It's quite simple, yet very profound, like laying bricks, the more layers you put on top, the more stable the structure.

[@Bella-wp7wz]

How do I tuck my pelvis and relax the pelvis floor?

[@BrigCommander]

what

[@browhat6935]

?

[@stephencarlsbad]

Brilliant analysis and corrective solution!

[@Impossibly-Possible]

I ruined my life standing up all the time with good posture, it cut my circulation off to my feet and hands and I got anterior pelvic tilt and I am just now getting it back to normal, I ended up on pain meds, i lost everything, almost killed myself from everything that came with it. My shoulder blades came off and I have WINGED blades.

[@astrixkz]

despite what you said in the last section, a week or so following the sitting and standing advice alone improved my posture noticeably

[@scottk1525]

Having a hard time understanding how these exercises accomplish our goal. Or maybe I'm just getting lots in the 20 things to keep in mind (foot position, breathing pattern, arm angle, side ab squeeze, lower back position, rib flare, pelvis tilt etc etc...) What is all of this doing to improve our posture? Are we targeting a certain muscle that when strengthened will "pull" us into position? Are we training our body to breath a certain way and counting on muscle memory to take over? Are we somehow altering the positions of joints or bones? How do these exercises improve posture exactly? Thanks.

[@stevem3556]

All these exercises is to train your body/muscles for proper posture. Ultimately, you want to be stacked in line head to toe. Feel most weight on your heels, hamstrings, glutes, side abs. Spine and head lengthened but neutral. Chin slightly down. Easier said than done, but focusing on these will lead to better habits and form.

[@scottk1525]

@@stevem3556 That doesn't really answer my question though. How does doing a couple minutes of exercises "train" my body/muscles to be in a certain posture/alignment for the other 99% of the day? If that were true, then it wouldn't stand a chance of working, since my body is "training" to be in the wrong posture for hours upon hours each day, so "training" it to be in the right posture for all of five minutes it's grossly insufficient to cancel out all my "training" in the wrong posture. So again, I don't understand the mechanism here. I can grasp exercises that are supposed to "strengthen" or "lengthen" muscles so as to influence good posture. Whether or not that works is up for debate I guess, but I can at least understand the mechanics of how that is supposed to work. I don't understand the mechanics here. It's all very vague. Just "train" your body?

[@gezaszabo4497]

I was searching for this exact comment/question. How is breathing for a short amount of time helps achieving our goal, what is our goal? Should I learn to breath like during the excersises all the time? Or does the posture during the excersise functions as a sample that I should "copy" and stand as that perhaps? I dont understand.

[@scottk1525]

@@gezaszabo4497 Yeah it's a reason I've stopped watching videos on his channel. He never bothers to explain why/how any given exercise is supposed to work. I wonder if he even knows.

[@stevem3556]

@@scottk1525 Yeah, I know what you're saying. It's hard to actually understand the mechanics and how to make adjustments with your own body. One thing that helped me with the shoulders is to focus on your sternum and pulling it up as if it were on a string connected to the sky. This will open up your chest and align your rounded shoulders. Keep your shoulders relaxed. This really helped me keep my upper body straight without unnecessary muscles strain.

[@kevindaub6215]

Didn't know this was a thing until I found this video. Using your videos I corrected the issue almost immediately. Moving on to shoulder stuff next.

[@jose2226]

Is this true?

[@nicholas50]

So to clarify please, (I'm a bit confused) on that first exercise: Are you supposed to keep your tailbone elevated off the ground the WHOLE time or lower it back down on the ground in between breaths? How is that supposed to work exactly? Thank you, Conor.

[@oliviaoverboard]

As someone who took ballet for many years… “squaring your pelvis” as my teacher called it was what we were taught to do to stand taller / look better

[@claridge7549]

I Had to dig to try and find this guys credentials. Couldn’t find any other than “trainer”.

[@johnmatelski6413]

I have been suffering (miserably) from trigger points in left scapula region for ... forever. I think trying to look 'big' and 'impressive' and 'superior' and 'tall' and 'fit' has always been part of my default conditioning, both culturally and evolutionarily, as others in the comments have mentioned. For me, it boils down to a lack of acceptance (e.g. of the normal curves of the spine, and more generally of my/our primate imperfections), followed by overcompensation. However, the system can't be fooled, and my karma for trying to appear to be more than I am, is a bunch of chronic pain. I'm praying for peace, relaxation, and centred-ness, for myself and all beings.

[@Stvlw7bxnow]

I took that advice very seriously growing up. "Stand up straight and pull your shoulders back" really fucked up my spine and pelvis. I have kyphosis in my neck and now I need a PT program now to learn to bring my pelvis back underneath my head. 🤦🏻‍♀️

[@Jmanis22]

Set corrective exercises are the best way to fix posture. If you want to "stand tall" do the corrective exercises but if you find yourself slouching, instead of pulling the shoulders back engage the core and you will feel your posture correct itself naturally. The core is one of the most important aspects to correcting posture, train the core and engage the core. Thank you for the video and exercises

[@Ramdapanda]

Why would you want to heelstrike?

[@jamesgoodman186]

1:10 I'm no expert so take everything i say with a grain of salt, but from what i understand, the heal strike actually isn't natural and is only something we've developed recently due to padded shoes. The foot is designed to land on the forefoot. It has a wider surface area and more shock absorption than the heal. Try healstriking barefoot while walking across a hard surface. It's gonna get painful pretty quickly.

[@jambob169]

I am the poster child for this video. I've been adopting that posture for years. Coupled with a lot of weight training and muscle gain, I kind of cemented that posture too. I've got muscle imbalances, flared ribs, uneven shoulders, knee and hip pain, and chronic pain in my lumbar spine. The last few weeks I've been doing pelvic tilts, scapular setting, core training, foam rolling, and consciously stopping myself flaring my ribs. I feel 10x better already! Deciding to "work on my posture" all those years ago was one of the worst decisions I ever made.

[@arielgalles2107]

This explains why marching band gives me lower back pain. We're taught the shoulder back posture as a means of projecting to the audience. Also, my mom's an OT and this video aligns very closely to her posture advice.

[@elcidgaming]

I find standing on all fours to be the most optimal posture

[@mpetrison3799]

Only works on me if you're female.

[@theperfectprogression2294]

I’ve been breathing into my back as much possible lately. Any exercises regarding proper breathing are mighty helpful

[@manwiththemachinegun]

This is a bit of a clickbait title, because most patients I see are absolutely rock hard tight in their pecs with rounded, internally rotated shoulders from driving, sitting, typing or using a phone all day with a clear thoracic flexion bias. The pelvis point is accurate, but shoulders back is certainly not, "the WORST" posture cue.

[@ninobach7456]

Thank you so much for this video. I injured my shoulder pretty badly and couldn't rehab it. Now I know what the problem is: I was always activating my back muscles because of pulling back my shoulder. However, the rotation of the shoulder gets inhibited by activating the back muscles and i ended up compensating by always using the strength of my back muscles. Which lead to severely underdeveloped shoulder muscles which resulted injury. Mind blown, problem solved.

[@krystmarodoren7446]

In relation to this, do you see any problems in itself with walkking without or with minimal heelstrike?

[@Dannysoutherner]

Do whatever is natural and does not hurt.

[@AJSimonTalks]

It’s impossible to not feel the center abs for me. They are super super flexed

[@mrsketchysketch]

Try breathing out with an open mouth instead of pursed lips.

[@tangomantactical]

I've been there and done that. Now I'm facing back surgery L4-S2.

[@conorharris]

Try a sideplank position before doing these exercises like this: kzbin.info/www/bejne/m5iZqKtqib1skJo Then when you do the exercises, as mentioned in another comment, exhale more softly and with a wider mouth.

[@seanc.5310]

I dealt with the same thing for a while. Try not forcing anything, think integrated abs and side abs not flexed. Try super gentle open mouth exhale and hold it as long as possible before a completely silent inhale. That's what helped me, hope it helps you too. Stick with it!

[@joshgroban5291]

What I've done rather than pushing my shoulder back, I've just pulled down/back my arms using my lats. It's not super tight, it's just a fine rest position and it makes me a lot more comfortable than shoulders back. Dunno if it's healthy tho

[@simongruber8366]

what you explained happens when you try to stand tall with your shoulders back is actually exactly what happened to me 💀maybe there are other reasons as well but thx a lot for this vid

[@simongruber8366]

like rib flare, head coming forward, and me not being able to actually keep an upright position

[@RaskyUlv]

Love this content. Especially the argument that the posture should be something that we self organize into. Thank you!

[@haelienicole]

I’m curious what you might think of bowspring yoga/posture. I only recently just started practising it, but I’ve felt a lot of pain relief in my neck and lower back. Based on my experience so far, untucking the tailbone, tilting the pelvis back, and standing with legs ever so slightly bent in a ready position has been more helping than standing with my tailbone tucked and my pelvis tilted forward.

[@KevinMtutoriales]

After years this is the best video I've found about posture. This even help corrects small imbalances by putting muscles into their right place and make them work with your breathing.

[@Deuce7Off]

I tried holding that position for extended periods of time and it ruined my lower back. My ribs ended up flaring too and had to relearn a lot of things.

[@trebledsoe2481]

Same, i have been at this for year all because i over corrected. What i found helped me was to make saure my lower half was corrected first, now that def made my top half from my shoulders to my head to slouch but as i progressed my lower more i started working on my shoulders and head

[@thedeathofaman]

This has really screwed me up. I had bad posture as a kid but was told chest high shoulders back. Now I have anterior pelvic tilt, plantar fasciitis, and chronic lower back pain. Now I'm trying to get back to a healthy neutral.

[@theyellowk123]

Heel striking is not the natural way we walk… you need to understand barefoot walking/running to understand our natural posture. Your diagram shows the upper body rounding the wrong direction, you are restricting range of motion of the shoulders. The advice you give in this video is what caused me to get injured, doing what you think is “wrong” fixed my injuries. I can hold that posture all day without effort, my body naturally rests in that position. If it takes effort to stand how you think is “wrong” you have tight muscles that need to be addressed. I had chronic tight muscles that made me feel how you say now, before I fixed my tight muscles I thought proper posture was impossible to hold all day. Now its my relaxed position.