A friend of mine thinks the spine should either be very slightly curved or not curved at all with a good posture. He showed me military posture which seems to show that’s the case, however all the “normal” posture things I’ve seen show the spine is more naturally curved.
So my question is the military posture the correct one and should our spines be mostly straight or no? If not any evidence for this so I can show them?
There has been some debate in recent years whether a J- or S-shaped spine is better. Supposedly the J shape is easier on our discs, though you need strong core muscles to maintain it. The military posture - straight spine, shoulders back - is close to the J shape. You’ll also see weightlifters exaggerate the J shape when doing squats to help avoid back injury. Though everything I’ve seen is anecdotal evidence. I haven’t seen any objective studies comparing these different postures.
Personally, I’m in the J/military posture camp. I have found that my back feels better when I pay attention to my posture and try to hold that shape. And I hate car seats that force me to have a more S-shaped curve.
I’m the same. Any seats that force the lower back inward are incredibly uncomfortable for me and cause lasting pain.
I also notice that when I’m being lazy while running, and “dump the weight” or allow the s spine shape to be more pronounced, I end up with a LOT of hip and back pain after my run
No. The cervical and lumbar spines are curved in (lordosis) and the thoracic spine is curved out (kyphosis.) Straightening of these as seen on x-ray is a sign of severe muscle spasm.
