LOGICAL ANALYSIS OF POSTURE: ELONGATION OF MUSCLES – THE LIMIT OF WEIGHT FOR MUSCLES

There is, however, a limit to how much weight these posture/weight-bearing muscles can support. As seen with weightlifters, the winner is the one that supports maximum weight through his training and endurance. Those who fail are either unable to lift the weight off the stand or they drop the weights before straightening the arms above the head as they feel there could be a potential risk of damage to the body. At this precise moment the joints bend and 'give in' sending signals of impending danger of tearing muscles. The discs in the lumbar spine are also at tremendous risk as they may get compressed beyond what is normal and suffer damage. That is why people who lift heavy weights or suddenly put on a lot of weight suffer low backaches quite frequently.

The fact that the body creates an anti-gravitational force to support its own weight as well as the added one, indicates that posture-maintaining or weight-bearing muscle fibres actually elongate or extend upwards against gravity. This conclusion is based on logic as almost no experiment or study has been carried out other than simple observations that I have made over the years and the isolated case of Professor F. P. Jones quoted opposite. As mentioned earlier, the main problem has been the fact that these experiments need to be carried out in vivo in a conscious person. This makes it difficult and 'unethical'.

I do know of one invasive study done by Nachemson in Sweden, where pressure-sensitive needles were inserted into the discs of living persons, showing that the pressure on discs is higher when sitting than when standing. The pressure was least when the subject was lying down, not surprisingly, but was three times as great when lying on one side or standing erect, five times as great when sitting upright, nine times as great when standing and bending forward and ten times as great when sitting and leaning forward. It is therefore greatly to your discs' and your posture-maintaining muscles' advantage to stand and sit upright, rather than bring the leaning muscles into play like guy ropes pressing down on a tent pole.

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