It's no secret that posture is a problem in a screen-time dominated world.

With many of us spending a few too many hours at the office or hunched over a laptop at home on your dining room table, the way we sit is can cause pain now and lead to bigger problems in the future.

Fortunately for us Peaches Pilates has shared with us a short, restorative workout, designed to make your body sing and realign your neck, head and shoulders. And it's still going to get that burn in to give you a nice strong, toned back.

Tori Clapham, Founder of Peaches Pilates shares her top tips and poses from the signature workout ‘Posture Hero’ to help stretch out those kinks and improve your posture.

 

Cobra

Lying on your tummy, place your hands under your shoulders. Press up with your palms either half way or if your body allows, push all the way up, keeping a slight bend in the elbows if you do. Keep legs and glutes engaged the whole time to support your lower back. Hold at the top for 3 counts and release, repeat 6 times.

 

Child's Pose

From the previous position, open your knees, push your bottom onto your heels, curl your spine over your body and stretch out your arms in front of you. Child's pose is great for movement throughout the thoracic spine which is the part of the body most affected from sitting at a desk.

 

Spinal stretch

Begin on all fours, shoulders over wrists and hips in line with knees. Place the left hand on the back of the head and start to open up towards the ceiling, hold here for a moment. Reverse this motion and bring the elbow down to the ground and across the body, hold again for a moment. Repeat this 5 times on each side.

 

Alternate Elbow Tap

Now we’re going to lie onto our tummy and we’re going to put one palm on top of the other. This move is going to continue warming up that upper spine. Squeeze your shoulders down and back, push your pubic bone into the mat to protect your lower back.

Take the forehead onto the palm of your hands and keep our gaze towards the floor. Inhale and lift everything off the mat. You’ll tilt so your right elbow taps the floor and your left elbow lifts up. Come back to centre and repeat on the other side, then come back down to rest.

Do this three times then push back into child’s pose.

 

Chest Lift

Next up we’re going to come back onto our tummy to use the sliding discs to work on our trapezius muscle. Coming onto your front, popping both hands onto your discs and squeezing your tailbone into the mat to protect your lower back.

Slide your shoulder blades along your spine to slide the discs along the floor. It’s a tiny movement and you’re not lifting your upper body. All your doing is switching on that trapezius muscle, which is responsible for holding your scapula, which are your shoulder blades. Down and back a few times.

Now we’ll add on. Slide your hands back and lift your entire chest up. Exhale as you slide up and inhale to lower. We’re going to do this 8 times.