Notes: Correct Posture by Capt. Godfrey Rodrigues

Correct Posture - Its meaning and its results is a fascinating little book on posture published in the 1930s by a man who appears to have no selfishly-motivated interest in sharing his knowledge and his experience (this was the first indication to me that this book was worth reading: he was sharing this knowledge because he truly believed in it and saw its truth in those who applied it).

For me the most interesting part of his story is how he came back to the western world with this newfound knowledge after spending some time exploring India and speaking with practitioners of yoga.

The principles presented in this book are incredibly simple and I can tell you, after applying them for less than two days myself, that it's the real thing. Try it and see for yourself. The book is short and you can read the entire thing online for free here.

I'm including a few of my favorite quotes from the book below.

Physical strength is of value to a man or woman only when it becomes a medium for a better and fuller life, a life of constructive labor an achievement.

Muscles are not the outward signs of inward health of body and mind, but they are part of man's equipment to 'carry on' in the rush and tumble of the world.

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[...] misunderstanding is the world's worst disease with which man has to contend.

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Teachers should themselves be taught first the value of posture and air--then they can turn to teaching it to the children. Make it necessary as their book education.

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From the body of Arabian literature comes these words, as true today as when they were first uttered by some scholar in ancient Bagdad or Mecca: "He who has health has hope, and he who has hope has everything."

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"The only way for a rich man to be healthy is by exercise and abstinence: to live as though he were poor." - Sir William Temple

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"Refuse to be ill. Never tell people you are ill: never own it to yourself. Illness is one of those things which a man should resist at the onset." - Lord Lytton

Notes: Chi Running Video

While looking for YouTube videos that demonstrated examples of proper running and walking gaits, I came across this video on Chi Running.

I'd come across the Chi Running book many years ago, but I unfortunately never looked into it. (I could've saved myself so much pain and discomfort while running.)

I've been exploring barefoot running for the past few years and as a result of running naturally, I've been discovering just how out of whack my body has become after years of improper running and walking, spurred on by, and no doubt contributing to, my bad posture.

If you run, even just a little, I strongly suggest watching this short video so you can understand how you may be, quite literally, putting the breaks on your progress.

There is so much we're not taught about how our bodies work and a little knowledge goes a long way towards avoiding injuries and correcting existing pains.

Swollen Shins as a Result of Muscular Imbalances

Over the course of the past 27 years, my posture has suffered greatly from the sedentary nature of my career. The extreme muscular imbalances have created a very dysfunctional body and those dysfunctions become more and more apparent the further I push myself physically.

For example while running, more pressure is exerted on my lower shins than is normal and as a result they've become swollen (and even bruised). They're in pain constantly, even when walking. My hip flexor muscles are locked into flexion, causing my torso to lean slightly forward. Extremely tight calves and quads also prevent full extension of the legs when running.

The past few months I've been doing more running than ever before and I've broken several personal records along the way (dropped my 4 mile run time from 41 min to 30 min in 3 months). Since noticing my swollen shins, I've eased up slightly on the length of my runs (3 miles instead of 4+) and started icing and stretching.

I seriously need to commit more time (i.e., daily) to fixing the muscle imbalances in my body. For the past 6 months or so, I've been using (on and off) Pete Egocsue's excellent postural therapy program, as outlined in two books, Pain Free and Pain Free at your PC. In the long run, fixing the muscular imbalances is more important than any other physical training since exercising a dysfunctional body will only strengthen the imbalances and prevent me from reaching my full physical potential!