Can poor posture cause chest pain? This is a question many people are asking. If you are such a person, then you should be glad indeed for in this article you will get all the answers you need.
Can poor posture cause chest pain? The answer is yes. Poor posture may cause chest pain.
Poor posture is the posture that results from certain muscles that tighten or shorten while others lengthen and weaken, which often occurs as a result of daily activities. There are different factors that can affect posture and include professional activities and biomechanical factors such as strength and repetition.
The chest pain is probably due to the way you sit, stand, walk or even lie down, especially for prolonged periods. Although serious heart disease can cause chest pain, most times it is due to poor posture.
Chest pain can be a warning sign for something serious like heart disease or something less worrisome like poor posture. However, the pain caused by a heart attack is usually intense: it is a feeling of tightness, compression or constriction.
Poor posture tightens the chest muscles, which contributes to muscle pain. Reduce or eliminate chest pain with postural exercises designed to correct muscle imbalances with stretching and strengthening. Exercise daily or at least three or four times a week as part of a general fitness program. Always consult a doctor first to rule out any serious medical condition that causes chest pain.
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How Can Poor Posture Cause Chest Pain?
Poor posture occurs when you slouch or slump. This results in a rounded back, weak shoulders, weak abdominals, and gluteal muscles. In this position, the chest muscles become tight while the back muscles lengthen and weaken.
To correct these muscle imbalances, you have to stretch the tight chest muscles. Also, strengthening the opposite back muscles can help you get back a straight posture. In addition, engaging and involving the core abdominals and gluteal muscles will improve the overall position or stance and help prevent injuries. Good posture should involve having your shoulders under your ears and your shoulder blades slightly engaged to avoid rounding your shoulders.
Can Poor Posture Cause Chest Pain? Continue reading to find out more.
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The shoulder blades or scapulas often protrude or turn forward with poor posture. Strengthen the back muscles, rhomboid, trapezius, and dorsal muscles to help the shoulders return to a neutral position and reduce tension in the chest muscles.
Furthermore, slouching on a chair does not always cause discomfort, but over time this position can put pressure on soft tissue and muscles that are already sensitized. This strain can increase tension in the muscles, which in turn can cause pain. This poor posture can in turn cause chest pain.
To remedy this, you have to get used to sitting properly. At first, you may not feel comfortable because your muscles were not conditioned to support you in the correct position.
As we mentioned above, exercises to strengthen the central and buttock muscles, as well as back extensions, will help correct a poor posture.
Are the muscles affected?
When the muscles that push the shoulder blades forward are tighter and stiffer than the muscles in the upper back, a collapsed chest is produced. This poor posture can cause chest pain. To remedy the problem, you must lengthen the short muscles and strengthen the muscles that push the shoulder blades back.
The main muscles responsible for pulling the shoulder blades forward and lowering them are the serratus anterior, the pectoralis major and the pectoralis minor.
While there are many factors that lead to tight and stiff pectoral muscles, such as excessive training, as well as other flexing exercises, a weak upper back and sitting and working at a desk for much of the day time can also cause this. The main way to reverse a caved-in chest is to decrease stiffness and first lengthen these muscles.
Can Poor Posture Cause Chest Pain? Continue reading to find out more.
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How to maintain good body posture
Posture Exercises for Chest Pain
1. Use the Corner
Chest stretching in the corner relieves tension in the chest muscles, causing rounded shoulders and slumping. Do this stretch standing in a corner with your shoulders relaxed and under your ears. Place the feet shoulder-width apart with the right foot slightly in front of the left.
Bend your elbows to 90 degrees and place each forearm and wrist on each wall. Lean forward until you feel a stretch in your shoulders and hold for 30 seconds. Change the position of the legs and repeat with the left foot slightly in front.
2. Retract the Shoulder Blades
The scapulae, or shoulder blades, often protrude or turn forward with poor posture. Strengthen the back, rhomboid, trapezius, and dorsal muscles to help bring the shoulders back to a neutral position and decrease tension in the chest muscles.
Do scapular retraction exercises by standing with your shoulders under your ears. Bend your elbows at 90 degrees with your palms inward. Gently squeeze the shoulder blades while moving your elbows back as if they were sliding on a glass panel. Avoid walking on the shoulders. Repeat 10 times for a total of three sets.
3. Hold it Up
Planking exercises target the deep abdominal muscles so that they act on the abdomen to improve overall posture. The toned abs will decrease the tension exerted on the lower and upper back that contributes to a forward tilt, rounded shoulders and a tight chest.
Do this exercise lying on the floor upside down. Get up on your toes and forearms with your elbows under your shoulders. Contract your abs to maintain a straight line from head to toe and hold the pose for 30 seconds to a minute. Repeat three times. If you have difficulty standing on your tiptoes or feel your chest is sinking, change to resting on your knees and progress as the exercise becomes easier. Poor posture that can cause chest pain is improved by this exercise.
4. Stretch those hamstrings
Tense hamstrings, the muscles in the back of the thighs, can lead to a posterior pelvic tilt in which the pelvis rotates backward. This decreases the natural spinal curvature, which leads to excessive rounding of the upper back and increases tension in the pectoral muscles. Release tight hamstrings with a half-session stretch.
Sit on a firm bed or bench with your left leg straight and your right leg hanging from the edge so that your foot is flat on the floor. Keep your back straight while leaning forward from your hips to reach your hand toward your toes. Avoid rounding your back or pushing towards pain. Hold the stretch for 20 seconds before changing to repeat on the right leg.
Summary and Recommendation
Poor posture can cause chest pain. Although the pain is not as severe as the one caused by more dangerous conditions like heart attacks. Nevertheless, it can still keep you uncomfortable, preventing you from carrying out your daily activities.
However, we have listed and talked about some exercises that can help you ease the chest pain which poor posture cause. Engage in these exercises regularly to find relief from chest pain.
If the pain persists, then you must consult your doctor for proper examination and prescription.
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