Posture

So my mother stopped by my house today, and she made the comment about how bad my posture was. I'll admit that I struggle with my posture. I slouch, lean, and really do not have that great, standing straight-up posture that I know I should have. I mean heck, it's something that I work on and think about on a daily basis.

Growing up I had pretty bad scoliosis, or a curvature of the spine, to about 13 degrees. When I was in 7th grade I was given an ultimatum of physical therapy or surgery and installation of a metal rod in my back; you guys can guess which option I chose.

The problem is that my lifestyle has me being really inconsistent with my workouts. Over the years, this spinal imbalance has caused the muscles in my back to develop differently, such that one side is stronger than the other. This is clearly noticeable; when I take pictures for identification cards, you can see that one shoulder is raised higher than the other, despite me having no knowledge of the subject. Sitting here right now, I have no idea on whether or not my posture is good or even decent.

Posture really is an important thing. Good strong posture indicates confidence and dominance, and is something important in both the bar and the board room. Furthermore, it is something that can help keep back problems out of your life. I'm not sure what I'm going to do to fix my problem long term, but clearly something has to be done. Whenever I am in a solid weightlifting routine, I have less back problems because my muscles are getting stronger. This is definitely something I'll be looking forward to doing more in the future.

Right now I could "crack my back" at any given moment. I can adjust the vertebrae in my neck by myself. I go to the chiropractor to give me a short term fix until my body settles back into the normal positioning, and have been there so much I feel like I can nearly adjust myself at this point.

In any case, posture, being a huge part of body language and conveying a powerful message, is something that you need to be self-aware about. I'm certainly not perfect and it's something I know I need to address. Whenever I walk by a glass store-front where I can see my reflection, I glance to see if my posture is okay or if I am walking horribly.

How do you all deal with posture? Is it something you think about at all? Have you had problems in the past and have worked to fix them? Please share your comments down below.