In this video, you’ll learn:

• The importance of postural awareness and retraining posture postpartum

• How posture affects the relationship between the diaphragm and pelvic floor

• How to “stack” your ribcage over the pelvis

• How to find your neutral spine

Posture is an important consideration postpartum because the position of your ribcage affects the relationship with the pelvic floor. In an “optimal” position, the ribcage is stacked over the pelvis. However, we usually see two common presentations:

• Butt tucked and ribcage translated behind the tailbone

• Increase rib flare and increased anterior pelvic tilt

In both of these positions the ribcage is not stacked over the pelvis. Therefore it is tough to achieve a diaphragmatic breath, which affects the movement of the pelvic floor.

This doesn’t mean that posture has to be perfect (that’s not realistic and not necessary!), and these positions are inherently “bad”. But we want to have the ability to find neutral and not spend all of our time in these postures. When we look at recruiting the deep core as we retrain postpartum, setting the ribcage over pelvis during exercise is a great way to set the body up for success. Improving your postural awareness can be a helpful tool in treating pelvic floor dysfunction as well.

A helpful cue to find the stacked position is to lean forward from the ankles, mimicking a standing plank. Lean all the way into your toes, allowing the ribcage to shift over the pelvis. Holding this position, now shift your weight to stack over the midfoot (on top of the shoelaces). This should feel like you are a bit more centered, and an easy way to find a more neutral position.

Another way to find what “stacked” feels like is by sitting on a physio ball. Arch and round your pelvis until you find the middle point. Here, you should feel stacked without working hard to hold this position. Remember, neutral is a direction, not a specific dot. Your neutral may look different that someone else’s.