Have you seen Amy Cuddy’s extremely popular Ted Talk from 2012? It’s all about how your posture affects how you feel. In the talk she demonstrates how “power poses” will make you feel more confident and how slouching can make you feel more flat, down and sad.
It’s about how sitting or standing up straight, with your shoulders back and eyes out on the horizon can make you feel instantly more powerful and confident.
This is because how you hold yourself physically impacts how you feel psychologically. And vice versa.
It’s easy to prove. Think back to a moment when you were going through a really sad time, what did your body want to do naturally? Most likely, you wanted to go inward, roll the shoulders forward and wrap yourself up. Get in bed or on the couch and curl up into a small ball of some sort.
Sometimes you need this time, to be sad and feel the feelings to move through them.
But what about when you don’t really have a reason to feel flat?
When you’re feeling a general lacklustre with no confidence for no apparent reason THIS is when your posture can really help you.
When you’re feeling nervous and unsure of yourself during a stressful time THIS is when your posture and how you stand will really help you.
Test it out right now! Stand up, roll your shoulders back, feel your chest space open, your heart open. Put your hands on your hips and take note of how you feel. Better?
The only trouble is, if you’ve had bad posture for most of your life it’s going to take some work to create better posture. Yes, you can hold your shoulders back there for a few minutes but you’ll get tired, forgetful and notice your shoulders begin to roll forward. If this is you, don’t worry we know how you feel!
The exciting thing is, you can work on changing this by strengthening your core muscles.
You see, the least cool thing about a strong core is the actual 6 pack abs… the greatest thing about a strong core is that it helps you stand with better posture with more comfort and ease.
Therefore your strong core…
… will make you more confident!
Ahhh, now this is the greatest reason to get in a plank position and hold it for a minute or 2!
And this is why we’re running a 10 Day Core Challenge inside MerryBody Online Studio!
10 days of amazing Yoga and Pilates classes that will focus on strengthening your amazing core!
Do these classes and you’ll feel more empowered and more confident. They will help you create better posture, prevent back pain and injury.
We begin on Monday 29 November (AEST). To be part of it, all you need to do is become a MerryBody Member, your first 7 days are free!
We run member-exclusive challenges like this every 2 months or so, get ready for all time motivation and inspiration inside the private community group. It’s time to move your body and feel confident!
Always merrymaking,
Emma + Carla
Ps. check out some of the moves you’ll be doing!
This plank variation is tough! But you’ll feel strong and confident after, plus we always offer modifications to make it work for YOU! The perfect option is knees down on the ground.
We LOVE tabletop toe taps. Less intense than the above move but oh so effective! Hello lower abs, you will feel it!
And then if you feel like it, extend the legs, crunch the shoulders and head up. Work your core, promote better posture and feel more confident!
Pps. Get excited about the 10 Day Core Challenge and read this article on 6 of the best Pilates moves for your core.