Correcting Imbalances
Pressurize and Realign
When breathing no longer maintains alignment muscles that have a leverage advantage become over active and tighten overpowering the muscles that do not have a leverage advantage. These leverage advantage muscles move bones. altering spine and joint positions. Correcting these imbalances requires restoring proper airway and breathing and activating specific muscles in the body so the body can realign itself. Maintaining this alignment requires focusing on the breath and specific muscle activation during sports performance, training and activities of daily living.
Balance Through Breath
How Breath Maintains Spine and Pelvic Alignment
- On inhale the ligaments of the diaphragm pull up on the lumbar spine (low back)
- At the same time the diaphragm pulls down on the lungs and compresses the organs in the abdomen down in to the pelvis and back toward the lumbar spine (low back)
- On exhale the transversus abdominis (deep abdominal wall) draws in and tractions the thoraco lumbar fascia (low back fascia) providing space to the lumbar (low back) discs
- When inhale becomes short and/or restricted by sedentary lifestyle, allergies, organ inflammation, trauma/fear, injury or altered pelvis position this support system breaks down
- When the pelvis position cannot be maintained the pelvis position alters to the left hip titled too far forward and the right in neutral or tilted backward or both hips tilted too far forward
- Recognizing and Treating Breathing Disorders, Leon Chaitow, ND DO, p. 31 with permission.
Natural Imbalance
When the abdomen no longer properly pressurizes to maintain torso alignment
- Because we are heavier on our right side (larger lung and liver) being sedentary pulls our torso to the right side centered over the right hip
- In the absence of the diaphragm pressing down on the organs and into the pelvic floor to stabilize the spine and hips the psoas/hip flexor (initially left and over time left and right) attempts to stabilize the low back
- The psoas/hip flexor pulls the low back toward the hip causing the low back/lumbar spine to excessively arch (initially left and over time left and right)
- The left low back/lumbar spine moving forward further turns and moves the torso to the right
- Eventually the body tries to center itself causing the right psoas/hip flexor to pull the right low back and pelvis too far forward (anterior)
- When both hips tilt too far forward pulling the pelvis too far forward (anterior) the body weight shifts forward to the toes