Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Sounds like everyone in your family has low tone, which you can’t do much about.

OP specifically said the family is not active. If they make a change as a family and emphasis exercise and sports, the low tone will go away. Athletes aren't all born with a 6 pack. In the absence of a genetic condition, low tone comes from being a couch potato.

Yep. If you are not active you are going to not have much muscle and you are going to get winded and tired and slump easily.

Fencing, like ballet, isn’t that good because it forces an unnatural (and unbalanced) way of holding your body

Anonymous wrote:Sounds like everyone in your family has low tone, which you can’t do much about.

OP specifically said the family is not active. If they make a change as a family and emphasis exercise and sports, the low tone will go away. Athletes aren't all born with a 6 pack. In the absence of a genetic condition, low tone comes from being a couch potato.

Sounds like everyone in your family has low tone, which you can’t do much about.

A lot of slumping is due to exhaustion and weakness overall. Do cardio, build up your heart, lift weights, and get enough rest. The same stuff that helps with everything else.

Swimming might not actually be the best thing for posture. It is not a weight bearing exercise and doesnt contribute to bone strength. It is a great exercise, don't get me wrong, but it should be augmented with weight bearing exercises.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:“Posture” is a totally arbitrary, made-up thing based on what we perceive as more aesthetically pleasing. I was a dancer and got compliments on my posture all the time. Thing is, lifting your chest up to have “good posture” is actually really bad for you, and I developed all kinds of problems as a result. Same with sitting up straight, it doesn’t actually do anything to fix your body, it just makes you look better, and can actually make things worse.

How old are your kids? What to do will vary depending on if they’re 6 or 16.

I don't think OP is referring to the exaggerated stance of a dancer. There's a happy medium between dancers and weak rounded shoulders and a curved back.

The principle is the same. Arbitrarily lifting your chest and pulling your shoulders back may look better, but doesn’t prevent pain or injury, and can actually create problems. It doesn’t fix the problem, just adds more tension.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:“Posture” is a totally arbitrary, made-up thing based on what we perceive as more aesthetically pleasing. I was a dancer and got compliments on my posture all the time. Thing is, lifting your chest up to have “good posture” is actually really bad for you, and I developed all kinds of problems as a result. Same with sitting up straight, it doesn’t actually do anything to fix your body, it just makes you look better, and can actually make things worse.

How old are your kids? What to do will vary depending on if they’re 6 or 16.

This is Op. They are 5 & 8.

Btw, it is the first time ever I hear “good posture” could develop problems or make things worse. Why? Too much tension on body/muscle?
I do admit that people with good posture looks more confident & pleasing.

Current research shows that there’s no correlation between posture and pain/injury. Research also shows that stretching and strengthening have little, if any, affect on posture. And when people try to get “good posture”, they most often lift their chest, squeeze their shoulders together, and suck their stomach in - all of which can have really negative effects in the body. Unfortunately, outdated recommendations are difficult to get rid of, so people will still recommend all of those despite no evidence that they actually do anything.

And 5 & 8, they best things to do are:

1. Get outside to play as much as possible. Walks, the playground, the woods, etc. Make the walks kid friendly - instead of trying to reach a destination in a certain amount of time, take the time to explore, squat down to see things on the ground, climb, etc. A wide variety of movement is best for developing bodies. Bikes don’t count, as they encourage the same flexed forward posture you’re trying to get rid of.

2. Minimize sitting. Tough at school, but at home, minimize the use of chairs/couches and encourage more time spent on the floor. When they do sit, don’t push them to sit up straight or lift their chest - posture is more related to the position of the pelvis than the chest/shoulders.

If they want to do sports, let them, but sports aren’t going to create a healthier body. Research is now finding that because sports use a very limited range of movement, they lead to repetitive stress injury as kids/people get older. It’s way better to just go outside and play.

Dance-ballet, swim, weights, gymnastics. Rowing. Yoga. TRX.

You need the back muscles to build up and want muscles to be well balanced and even. I'd not do weights with kids so young unless you know what you're doing... With an eye to posture, I think a rower would be a good indoor option with minimal training. TRX pushups, etc, would also work... but even things like tennis or badminton would help stretch and strengthen the upper body.

I'd think normal playground equipment and the other things listed above would work on for the younger ages.

Anonymous wrote:“Posture” is a totally arbitrary, made-up thing based on what we perceive as more aesthetically pleasing. I was a dancer and got compliments on my posture all the time. Thing is, lifting your chest up to have “good posture” is actually really bad for you, and I developed all kinds of problems as a result. Same with sitting up straight, it doesn’t actually do anything to fix your body, it just makes you look better, and can actually make things worse.

How old are your kids? What to do will vary depending on if they’re 6 or 16.

I don't think OP is referring to the exaggerated stance of a dancer. There's a happy medium between dancers and weak rounded shoulders and a curved back.

Anonymous wrote:“Posture” is a totally arbitrary, made-up thing based on what we perceive as more aesthetically pleasing. I was a dancer and got compliments on my posture all the time. Thing is, lifting your chest up to have “good posture” is actually really bad for you, and I developed all kinds of problems as a result. Same with sitting up straight, it doesn’t actually do anything to fix your body, it just makes you look better, and can actually make things worse.

How old are your kids? What to do will vary depending on if they’re 6 or 16.

This is Op. They are 5 & 8.

Btw, it is the first time ever I hear “good posture” could develop problems or make things worse. Why? Too much tension on body/muscle?
I do admit that people with good posture looks more confident & pleasing.

“Posture” is a totally arbitrary, made-up thing based on what we perceive as more aesthetically pleasing. I was a dancer and got compliments on my posture all the time. Thing is, lifting your chest up to have “good posture” is actually really bad for you, and I developed all kinds of problems as a result. Same with sitting up straight, it doesn’t actually do anything to fix your body, it just makes you look better, and can actually make things worse.

How old are your kids? What to do will vary depending on if they’re 6 or 16.

People that have excellent posture work out. It's not like you take a few lessons and you'll have great posture, there's no such thing as muscle memory for posture. You either have a strong core and strong back muscles that you are always working to keep in shape, or you don't. Kids that have low muscle tone need daily exercise, something like bike riding and climbing trees and even just running around is good for developing muscles and strength. Set a good example by doing yoga with everyone, look into pilates as well for a good low impact core workout. Swimming and strength training with resistance bands is great as well.

Swimming is great

Both I & DH have poor posture, and I am talking about standing & sitting posture. When I was in school way back, I never sat up properly. I attended all girls private middle & high school that do not stress much on any sports, so I didn’t do much exercise. I sometimes suffer neck, shoulder & back pain due to my lack of exercise, job ( work with computer all day), & poor posture habits. I do yoga these days to relieve some muscle stress.

I have 2 kids, and especially the oldest one has poor posture ( sitting & standing), especially slouching. On top of it, he has mild low muscle tone. I am tired of keep yelling or reminding them. For their better health & looking better, what are the sports or exercises that are good for kids to build or maintain good posture? I hear ballet & fencing are good for these, why? If kids do those sport or exercise on regular basis, will they have better posture effortlessly ( like natural born) because their body/muscle have memory /are used to it?