Posture, Posture, Posture! What If It Didn’t Have to Be So Much Work?

"Sit up straight!"

 "Don’t slouch!"

 "Stand tall!"

We’ve all heard these commands—maybe from a teacher, a parent, or even that little voice in our own heads. But let’s be honest: trying to hold ourselves in a “correct” posture often feels like effort, tension, and... well, work. You can force it for a while, but eventually, your muscles get tired, your shoulders creep up, and your body just wants to give up the act.

But what if good posture wasn’t something to hold at all?

What if it was something you could find—effortlessly?

In the Feldenkrais Method, we approach posture differently. Rather than teaching you to "stand up straight," we explore how you organize (prepare) yourself to move. Good posture, from this perspective, isn’t about symmetry or stiffness. It’s about readiness.

Moshe Feldenkrais described posture as the ability to move in any direction with little or no preparation. That means posture is dynamic, not fixed. People with good posture don’t try to have good posture. Their structure supports them and their muscles don’t have to do all the heavy lifting to keep them upright. 

When I get a request to help with posture, I get excited—because when your posture improves, everything improves. Especially your workouts. I sometimes think everyone should take a posture course before starting an exercise routine. 

In my next round of classes, I’ve adapted a Feldenkrais workshop taught by one of my teachers into a 7-week series focused entirely on posture.

In this series, we’ll explore what it really means to have posture that supports you—instead of the other way around. Each week, you’ll experience gentle movement lessons designed to help you sense your alignment, improve your coordination, and uncover the habits that make posture feel like hard work.

These classes are for anyone who wants to feel stronger without straining, taller without tension, and more grounded without gripping. By the end, you might just find yourself standing a little taller—not because someone told you to, but because your body figured it out on its own.