body-wisdom

In May I spent two weeks in Mumbai, on the west coast of India. To a newcomer it can be overwhelming, being a megacity of over 12 million people; I hold a deeply personal connection and affection for this place where I grew up.
I was in Mumbai on holiday, but I didn’t break my habit of over three decades of taking some candid photos and videos of what I observed around me. Nothing newsworthy or touristic—just snatches of daily life here and there. Whereas seeing healthy posture has become rare in the US, it is still an everyday encounter in India, and that has inspired me to record it and share. 

Carrying infants with ease

On the streets of Mumbai, you see people carrying their babies and young children further than you would typically see in the US, where parents and grandparents are more likely to transport their kids in strollers and cars. But we still want to be able to carry our kids, right? As I know well from raising three children, infants are heavy, and it takes a strong, well-aligned structure—as well as good technique—for this to be a practical option. You want your shoulders settled back, your chest open, and protective support from your inner corset and deep spinal muscles to protect your back against compression and prevent swaying back or rounding forward.

During my trip I was delighted to meet up with members of our IT team, including Sadashiv, our lead software developer, and his family. Here you see him carrying his son, Kabir.

Without a healthy postural setup in the torso, you are less likely to use your arms and hands in a way that allows your little one to perch on their sitz-bones and sit tall, stacking their spine in an upright but relaxed way. So if a parent’s posture is poor, and there is a poor understanding of what is architecturally healthy for a child, both parent and child are likely to be getting into damaging habits. Parents in the US often strain their backs or wrists while carrying, while their youngsters often get their pelvises tucked and spines rounded.

Leaning back and tucking a child’s pelvis will either round their spine, as you see here, or make it hard work for them to sit upright.

Walking smoothly

The short video below is typical of the relaxed but smooth walk—or glidewalk as we call it—that happens naturally when healthy alignment is happening all the way from the feet, up through the legs and hips, and through the pelvis and spine. And of course a glidewalk is ideal for carrying any extra load, whether that is your child, a bag on your shoulder, or, as is common in countries which industrialized later and where traditional body-wisdom persists, a load on your head.

This slowed-down video makes it easier to spot all the hallmarks of a healthy gait pattern: the back leg straightens, the glute is engaged, the heel stays down longer, and he lands bending his front knee. The man’s feet point outward, not ahead, and his heels land either side of his midline. 

Back at the apartment

I stayed in my brother’s apartment in Mahim, and was fortunate to be supported by Dyaneshwar, handyman par excellence. Dyaneshwar has the steady and self-possessed demeanor and posture typical of many people from the villages. Below is a snapshot I took of him using his cellphone. In this simple everyday activity, you can see how the modern world of tech devices can coexist with traditional postural wisdom.

Using a cell phone does not result in poor posture when traditional body-wisdom is in place.

Still in the apartment, I’ll finish with this video clip of Dyaneshwar fixing us a cup of chai (Indian tea). It is striking how, with appropriate muscular tone, his shoulders remain so relaxed looking without drifting forward.

Observe how Dyaneshwar makes a small hip-hinge to reach the sink, and maintains his straight back, tall neck, and posterior shoulders throughout.

Posterior shoulders help bring about so many benefits to the body, for example, mobile shoulder joints, freedom from RSI, a comfortable and straight upper back, and an open chest. Shoulder rolls, glidewalking, and a healthy spine shape are all techniques taught in logical sequence and detail in our in-person Foundations course, one-day Immersion course, our online Elements course, plus our Gokhale Active program.

Best next action steps 

If you would like help in rediscovering healthier posture, get started by booking a consultation, online or in person, with one of our teachers. 

You can sign up below to join any one of our upcoming FREE Online Workshops…