Are you one of those people who want a good posture but still continue slouching on the couch? Or are you confused about how to improve your posture? Should you get a posture brace or start pumping iron in the gym? I can totally understand the confusion with so much information out there and these companies trying to promote those posture braces. I’ll tell you what, stay away from those braces! They just end up making your muscles lazy. Next thing you know, you’re dependent on the damn thing and can’t live without it! Ok, I’ve taken it a bit too far. You’ll just end up getting rid of it anyway because your muscles will start getting sore being held in an awkward position. So why not consider strengthening your postural muscles, that hold you up in a good posture. Nothing better than reformer pilates when it comes to strengthening your postural muscles. Here’s why:

Man sitting with poor posture

Reformer pilates strengthens trunk muscles needed for a good posture

Now the movements that you do on the reformer machines are such that they will make you use your core muscles whether you like it or not. That’s the beauty of it. The core muscles also help to hold you up in a good posture. Whether you’re using your arms or your legs to do the movement, your core muscles are constantly active while doing pilates. So if you feel like you’re unable to sit for long in a good posture, your trunk muscles need a dose of strength. It’s absolutely important to maintain a good posture.

Reformer pilates stretches tight muscles that are important for a good posture

Pilates reformer

Reformer pilates is not about just strengthening but also streching the tight muscles. Usually with a bad posture, the shoulders tend to become more rounded and the neck protrudes forward. This causes tightness in the front muscles of the neck and shoulders. The muscles around the shoulder blade tend to be overused as well. The movements that we do on the reformers are slow and steady. The muscles respond well to the slow speed and are able to stretch further. Our patients who’ve done reformer pilates with us say that they feel more flexible after their sessions. This can be excellent for someone with stiffness because of arthritis.

If your joints hurt doing other exercises, try reformer for a good posture

woman strong band exercise scaled

If you love aqua aerobics, you’ll love reformer pilates! Because the movements are slow and controlled, there’s minimal impact on the joints. Which means your joints will feel more supported while exercising. And you don’t have to sweat it out in the gym for a good posture. Muscles respond really well to slow and steady movements. So if you’re someone with chronic pain or fatigue, these exercises will work really well for you. You’ll find that you’re able to do a lot more to help your posture. Here’s a link to some exercises that we do on the reformer:

https://align-pilates.com/2020/10/20/tillypilates-pilates-reformer-home-workout-videos/