A Good Body Posture and How it Helps the Belly

Did you know that having a good posture not only makes you look more attractive but it also helps your body function better? But beyond that, did you know it also has a big effect on your belly?

Fitness trainers are often asked what the best exercise to get rid of fat that accumulates in the abdomen area (colloquially known as the tummy or belly) is. Most people think that to lose fat on that body part you must do thousands of crunches everyday but what they fail to realize is that when one has a bad posture the bad fat in the abdominal area tends to excel and increase rapidly.

When one walks straight and sits up straight, keeping the spine in an extended position, not much fat is accumulated in that area of the body. It is sometimes difficult to remember to maintain a good posture, and part of the problem is that many of the activities we do during the day like driving, sitting in front of a computer, including cooking, make us bring the shoulders and sometimes the jaw forward, which brings about an unbalance to the alignment of the spine.

Another thing that happens quite often when people are sitting is that they take a totally loose posture (slouching). What ends up happening is that the back muscles, the shoulders and neck lose their toning in your body and ultimately they end up getting used to working that way.

One way to counteract the above point is by first of all paying attention to your posture during the day. There are also many exercises you can do to strengthen the upper back, neck and back shoulders. There are also other exercises that help stretch the muscles that have shortened as a result of a poor posture.

A very simple exercise you can do to strengthen the upper back is to stretch your shoulder blades backwards and let them follow the movement of the scapula.

This can also be done using an elastic band. By keeping your arms straight while pulling on the elastic band you will strengthen the muscles of the back of the shoulders in addition to the muscles of the upper back.

A good exercise for the neck is to bring the jaw backwards, while at the same time keeping it parallel to the floor. All the exercises mentioned above can be made in repetitions of approximately twelve to fifteen times.

To stretch your shoulders and chest, you can put your arms behind your head keeping your forearms parallel to the floor and elbows to the sides. For this to be effective stay in this position for about twenty to thirty seconds.

All previous exercises are simple and of great benefit, don't forget to also maintain a good posture as often as possible. It is important that you remind yourself about this, before you know if it will become second nature and you will feel the difference.

WebMD, Looking Thinner in an Instance, WebMD Health & Fitness