Sitting up straight

POSTURE POINTERS

Stop blaming the chair for your backache. For all you know, your posture may be the culprit. It’s a good idea to try some bio-mechanical exercises, suggests A Varsha Rao

When I told Dr B Bharath Shankar about the pain in my lower back, he sent me a 50-second video that described a very simple exercise. Sitting in a chair, with my hips higher than my knees, I had to squeeze a pillow between my thighs till they were exhausted. That’s it?

That’s all I need to do to get rid of my recurring backache? “This is all you need,” he assured me. With great scepticism, I attempted the exercise regularly and was pleasantly surprised by the positive results. The pain started to subside almost immediately.

A first of its sorts in the country, posture alignment therapy is revolutionising the way we look at our pains. In practice in the US since 1978, this ingenious therapy was introduced in India about 25 years ago by Dr Bharath.

Consisting of a series of exercises called ‘motion-cises’, this therapy aims at addressing the muscular imbalances and body dysfunction. The programme is customised for every patient and analyses your posture with reference to the human blueprint.

After the analysis, a series of exercises and stretches are designed to bring your body back into alignment and eliminate the pain.

Dr Bharath blames hectic lifestyles for all the major problems. “Our demanding lifestyle gives birth to a number of problems - headache, neck pain, chronic back, shoulder pains, hurting knees and painful hip. A majority of the population runs to the pharmacy to load up on painkillers, only to find themselves in the same situation after a while. One should understand that in such musculosketal dysfunctions, the site of pain is rarely the site of the problem.”

There’s a reason why doctors insist on good posture. The muscles of the human body are designed to work in tandem with each other. Malfunctioning of these muscles leads to bone misalignment and then, joint pains.

Thus, a good posture has the ability to eliminate a majority of everyday problems. “Like how a 10-storied building stands strong on a sound foundation, our body also depends on a strong hip. When you indulge in harmful practices, your hip shifts out of its place, making your muscular skeleton go haywire,” explains Dr Bharath.

 “Our therapy actually consists of specialised bio-mechanical movements that isolate the pain by ‘re-educating’ the many muscles. These movements may range from exercising your thighs to stretching your hips,” Dr Bharath says.

So, how does focusing on one’s posture help subside the pain in our back or neck? He recalls an instance, where a man experienced severe headaches and vertigo.

“He underwent a great deal of procedures and gulped down painkillers. All I asked him to do was to focus on the inside muscles on his thighs while exercising. This pushed his pelvis back into position, realigned the spine and readjusted the position of his head. This simple realignment proved more effective than any other therapy.”

“It is a domino effect. You start from the root and work up towards the pain. Once the skeleton falls back in the right place, all your pains start receding. People start experiencing drastic changes within 10-15 days, but for a lasting change, they have to follow it for a year or so,” explains the doctor. There are no medications, medical equipments, surgeries or any kind of physical manipulation. The focus is on the biomechanics of the human body. 

Currently, Dr Bharath and his wife, Preethi Bharath are working towards creating greater awareness through their clinic Heavenly Bodies in Chennai. Boasting of a success rate of 95 percent, they have also treated many well-known personalities such as Ratan Tata, L K Advani and Subrata Roy, to name a few.

Doing it right

Back pain is the second most common reason for visiting a doctor. It’s time you set things right. Here are some guidelines to help you attain a good posture:

* Don’t stand upright. Keep your knees bent a little when standing. Stand with your feet about shoulder-width apart. Don’t put your entire body weight on the heel of your feet. Pull your shoulders back to a point where they are aligned with your spine. If standing for long periods of time, move around a little and bend your knees.

* While sitting, ensure your back and bottom are aligned with the curve of the chair and rest your feet comfortably on the ground. Avoid crossing your legs as this tilts the skeleton. 

Remember, your knees should be slightly below the level of your hips. Avoid slouching forward.

* Avoid sleeping on your stomach as it wrecks your spinal cord. Sleep on your back and if needed, use a pillow under your knees. Also, avoid sleeping with your legs drawn up close to your chest. If the pain is severe, you could try out special pillows and mattresses that are designed to work on the areas of discomfort.

* Make exercise a regular part of your everyday regime. Even at work, make it a point to stretch your muscles every hour or so. Don’t maintain the same position for long periods of time.

Correcting one’s posture can, indeed, take a lot of time. So, take it slow and start by focusing on one thing at a time. Being constantly aware of your position will help heal your pains faster. So, here’s how you get started: Hold your head high and sit up straight.