Sofa Shame - Is it the couch or your posture?

I admit, my couch is a little, well, lumpy.  It was ok when I got it.  It's simple, fit in the room, and turns into a guest bed.  Exactly what I needed...but then my kids stood on it a bunch of times and now there's a crater in one side that you don't notice until you sit on it. 

Sofa shame sets in!

What a couch for a posture coach!...Say that five times fast!

You might have a couch you love or that you love to hate.  In any case, I wonder...how do you sit on it?

Many of my clients come in with another kind of sofa shame...that their posture goes downhill the second they sit on the couch...and sometimes the problem really is the couch, but other times is more about habit and mindset.

Some folks shamefully glance down as they 'admit" that they lounge on the sofa...like it's the sin of good posture.  My version of the "posture police" banishes the myth that to have good posture you have to be stiff and holding yourself up...and part of that is pointing out that it's ok to kick back and lounge.

Lean back into that comfy couch!  Surrender to the fluffiness!

The problem with lounging is that when people think they're relaxing, they're sometimes not really relaxing. 

For example...They're leaning back, but at the same time pulling their shoulders forward or their neck forward...or they might slide down in a way that their lower back is hardly touching any part of the couch and is just being compressed.

What I'm getting at here is that if you're going to lie back on the couch, then REALLY lie back on the couch.  Give into gravity, let it support you!  Don't become a couch potato, but commit to the lounging fully, not half-way!

Now, here's the catch...let's say you try to relax your shoulders back, but they won't relax.  First, don't pull them back!  This is where you might want an intermediary step before getting on the couch...like lying on the floor and letting the shoulders drop (don't pull). 

Try my audio guide for 10 minutes to help you feel more relaxed and integrated in your body before you start movie night, curl up with a book or your laptop.

Yeah, that might sound strange to have a "pre-lounging" routine, but it will probably be easier to give in to the cushiness of the couch if you do this first.

And what if your couch really isn't that great, but you're not quite ready for a new one?  Go for pillows, pillows, and more pillows!  Put them behind you.  Stack them up and lean back on them.  Just make sure you're using the pillows to help support more of your back, whatever position you're in.

So let's recap...
1. Let go of any "posture shame" that you have around lounging on the couch from time to time.
2.  Really lounge.  Relax and be supported by the couch.
3.  If needed, prepare for lounging by lying on the floor (See here for how.)
4.  If you truely have sofa shame, then until you replace it, use lotsa pillows!