Sitting as well as standing with proper postural alignment will allow you to work more efficiently with less weakness and strain on your body’s ligaments and muscles. Being aware of good posture is the number one step to breaking old poor postural habits and lessening stress and strain on your spine. By putting this knowledge into practice,you can prevent the structural anatomical changes which can develop if poor posture is left uncorrected for several years.
You might not think of yoga as the way to build up chest and upper body strength, but you would be surprised to see how much of an impact they can have. Yoga has many benefits, from building muscle and joint strength to improving your mental connection to your body. Building your chest strength also carries many benefits, helping to improve heart health, posture, and lung capacity. Here are 5 poses that can help you to improve your body by strengthening your chest:
- Reverse Table (Ardha Purvottanasana)
This pose assists with stretching the front of your shoulders, your chest, and also your biceps – while helping you to build strength throughout your body.
Directions: Seated on the ground, feet flat on the floor, place your hands palms down on the ground behind you (your fingers should be facing you). Slowly, pressing into your palms, lift your hips off the ground (spine straight). Hold here as you breathe.
- Balancing Pose (Santolanasana)
This is a very straightforward pose that helps to improve your posture and spine alignment.
Directions: Lying on your stomach, place your hands under your shoulders and, tucking your toes under, slowly raise your body off the ground. Your arms need to be in a straight line and your hands must still directly under your shoulders, and you head should be an extension of your spine pointing forward but relaxed.
- Camel Pose (Ustrasana)
The camel pose stretches your chest, shoulders, hip flexors, and quads. It also assistswith improving your posture by stretching the entire spine.
Directions: Kneel on the floor keeping your feet flat and pressed into the ground. Keeping your hips aligned with your knees, hip width apart, slowly reach your hands back to grasp your ankles and stretch your upper body backwards.
- Extended Puppy (Uttana Shishosana)
This pose helps to target small muscles in your shoulders that can be hard to reach or stretch.
Directions: On your hands and knees, knees comfortably hip width apart, carefully walk your hands forward towards the front of the mat. Spread your palms and press into them as you lower your chest to the floor, keeping your hips lifted.
- Cat-Cow (Chakravakasana)
This dynamic pose allows you to stretch your back and upper body by means of spinal extension and flexion.
Directions: Start on your hands and knees, knees hip width apart and hands directly below shoulders and head neutral. (Cat) Beginning at the base of your spine, slowly roll your spine upwards and lower your head into your chest, pressing your back upwards and pulling you heart inwards. Hold for a moment, then (Cow) again starting from the base of your spine slowly lower your back down again raising your head upwards and pressing your shoulders away from your head. Repeat.
Practising yoga asanas as well as breathing exercises on a regular basis will not only lessen the risk of illnesses butenhance your overall health and fitness. Yoga is often linked with developing flexibility. That’s definitely true, but it can do more than that. Yoga is also an excellent method of building muscle and toning your body. So, the good news is that weights are not the only way to develop a strong chest. Yoga is a great alternative way to build your chest in the comfort of your home as well as without lifting weights. Exercising your chest muscles on a regular basis can improve your upper body strength, as well as benefit the heart in the process.
