Improve Your Posture by Taking Ballroom Dance Lessons in Charlotte NC!

How is your posture? How is your dance posture? Are you satisfied with the way you carry yourself, or do you think you could do better? Good posture, just like poor posture, is a habit. Good posture keeps your spine strong and makes you look strong and confident. Poor posture leads to fatigue in your muscles and ligaments, and pain in your back, neck, and head. It also makes you appear unsure of yourself.  Having good posture while dancing also makes your dance moves much better as well!
Posture is your body’s alignment and positioning with respect to gravity. When you stand, sit, or lie down, gravity exerts force on your joints, ligaments, and muscles. Good posture helps distribute the force of gravity throughout your body so no one structure is overstressed. According to the American Chiropractic Association, good posture helps keep bones and joints in correct alignment, reduces the stress on the ligaments holding the spinal joints together, allows muscles to work efficiently, and helps prevent muscle strain, fatigue, and pain.
Here are some tips from the Mayo Clinic to help you make good posture a part of your daily life.

Standing
Hold chest high.
Keep shoulders straight and relaxed
Pull in abdomen and buttocks
Keep feet parallel and balance weight evenly on both feet
Keep knees relaxed, not locked

Sitting
Keep shoulders straight and relaxed
Rest both feet flat on the floor, keeping your knees level with your hips
Sit with back firmly against chair (use a pillow for your lower back)
Stretch top of head toward the ceiling, tuck chin in slightly
Keep upper back and neck comfortably straight

Did you know that dancing is great for your posture! It strengthens the core muscles in your abdomen and back, as well as those around your spine, which help control posture. And while dancing improves your posture, and good posture makes you a better dancer. Check out the Arthur Murray Ballroom Dance Studios in Charlotte and Lake Norman, NC.

links:

American Chiropractic Association

“Prevent Back Pain with Good Posture”

“Posture for a Healthy Back”