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Lesson 10 Posture and Mental State

If you have ever noticed the difference between the posture of someone who is depressed and someone who is happy, you will easily grasp the relationship between posture and mental or emotional states. The important point is that just as a given mental state leads to a certain bodily posture, a given posture will also induce a certain mental and emotional state. We studied this same phenomenon from a different point of view in Relax. We distinguish two kinds of bodily postures: 1) static positions, which are most commonly standing up, sitting down, and lying down, and 2) dynamic positions such as walking forward, walking backward, bending over, and changes of pace, and transitional movements.

Exercise Series 1: Static Body Postures A) Stand as you do normally. Imagine a vertical line passing through your head and body to the ground. Using this straight line as a reference, notice whether your head is badly positioned, whether your chest is sunken, your stomach is out of line, or if you hold your lower stomach in and thus push your buttocks out of line. Do not yet try to change any incorrect positions; simply keep them in mind and remember all the details. Then, draw your body in your notebook just as you remember it, both the side view and the front view. Mark any incorrectly positioned points, and see what you need to correct. Now stand up and start to correct your posture. Notice that this isn’t easy because for years you have formed incorrect posture habits. Change back and forth several times between your usual incorrect posture and the correct posture. Once you think your posture is correct, check it by standing with your heels and spine flat up against the wall. Note any areas where your body does not touch the wall, and correct things so you stand with everything in a vertical line. B) Sit in a chair as you normally would. Again, imagine the vertical line passing through your head, and note the errors in your posture. Then, correct your posture. Finally, put your buttocks and spine up against the back of the chair. Then return to your normal incorrect position. Change back and forth between your normal, incorrect position and the correct position several times. C) Lie down and relax your muscles. Observe which parts of your body are incorrectly positioned and cause strong tensions. Pay special attention to the position of your head and back. Correct your posture, and then change back and forth several times.

Exercise Series 2: Dynamic Body Postures A) Walk as you do normally, and observe any errors in your posture. Next, keep walking and try to maintain the correct posture you established in the previous exercise series. B) Walk, sit down, then stand up and walk again as you would normally, and notice any errors in your posture. Repeat this, but this time use correct posture. C) Open and close a door, trying to keep correct posture. Notice whether you lose your correct posture as you do this. Repeat this several times. D) Walk around the room, and then lean over and pick up an object from the floor. Keep walking around, and lean over again and put the object back on the floor. Notice whether you abandon your correct posture as you do this. Repeat this several times. E) Walk around and greet the other people-shake hands and talk briefly. Walk around again and notice the moments when you “abandon” correct posture. Repeat this several times. Now, repeat the lesson again including Exercise Series I and 2. Write down your observations and exchange comments with the other people so you can help each other improve incorrect postures. IMPORTANT: Make it a point to correct your posture in everyday life until the next meeting.