Perfect Poise, Perfect Life
Bring your body into balance and revolutionise your life
By Noel Kingsley
Publisher Hodder Mobius
AVAILABLE HERE
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Who ails least?
The question came up during an Alexander Technique session yesterday, whether more women have bad posture than men, or visa versa? My client commented that she does not hear of men complaining of their back or posture as much as maybe her women friends. Well, I think that comes down to who you know and who you talk to.
It may be true that in general women are generally aware of their health and beauty needs and requirements and consequently are concerned to make the most of themselves. But I have met a great number of men who also take a great interest in their health and well-being. It may also be the case that men are more aware of their physique with an increasing number seeking to gain the statuesque appearance of Apollo, but this is more to do with strength, muscle development rather than their posture. It may be surprising to hear that I meet a great many men who claim to work out in a gym several times a week, who have built up strong muscles but still complain of a weak back. In such cases, it is not the muscle strength that is the issue, but rather what they are doing with their muscles and how well they are co-ordinated; we can have individually strong muscles, but it they are not working together well, we can have dreadful posture and suffer severe pain and deterioration in health. It is quite possible for a muscularly less developed person to have a stronger back than someone who is very developed but uses the muscles badly.
In answering my client's question, I fall into the trap that a straight forward answer predetermines. The main issue is not whether we are female or male, but more to do with how we use our musculature and physique, how we respond to stressful situations, how aware are we of our posture, health and well being and whether we do anything about it. I do not like categorising people. We are all individuals and having worked with thousands of clients, I am still waiting to meet two people who are the same. If I live to be ten thousand years old, I suspect I shall never have such a privilege. Even so-called 'identical twins' have their own life experiences and despite having many similarities they are very different and unique in their own way.
Men may be less likely to talk about what they may consider weaknesses such as back pain, but many women will say that their husband or partner is always complaining about his back! The reason however, may be to do with not cutting the hedge or garden lawn. Whether the connection is made, where we realise that our back pain, sciatica, stiff neck or aching hips and knees may be caused by poor posture, I would hesitate to assume. For many of us, if we are suffering, then treatment and relief from pain in the troubled area is what we seek from doctors, specialists and medication. I am glad to see that increasingly the connection between physical discomfort, deterioration and pain to overall poise is now being recognised. So treating the symptom is gradually becoming less of a focus with more emphasis being given to addressing the cause. Let's remember, that pain has its purpose; it is a red light flashing on our computer screen to tell us that there is malfunction and something is wrong. It's no use just putting the light out; we need to fix the malfunction.
Whether male or female, we are very similar in terms of our need to maintain balance on two relatively small feet in relation to gravity. It is essential that we are in good balance to avoid unnecessary strain. Stress, desk-work, repetitive work, upbringing, postural and muscular habits all have an effect on us. We are all different and unique in our own way with our own experiences and means of coping with life. In teaching the Alexander Technique I help people cope with their own particular situation, postural tendencies and habits and to make improvements for themselves. But whether more women than men experience postural problems, or is it visa versa, I can only say, Yes.... :-)
