The Pelvis
The pelvis is a part of the skeleton located at the waist level and is often called the “pelvic bowl”. It’s called a bowl because the intestines ideally sit in this bowl, and, ideally, don’t spill out the front of this bowl. Contents of bowls spill out when a bowl is tilted. Everyone knows that. The pelvic bowl is no different.
The human pelvis highlighted in blue
The difference between the tilt of the pelvis when standing in a type 1 position and a type 2 position are noticeable immediately as you assume the position of either form.
In this blog I’ll show how the Perfect Posture method affects the body’s pelvis in a positive manner immediately upon initiation of the positioning.
Follow these directions and you will see the immediate result of shifting from a Type 1 position to a Type 2 or Perfect Posture positioning:
Stand “up straight”. The way we were taught to stand in school. Lock those knees back. Chest out. Shoulders back. Now place your hands on your hips or pelvis.
Put the index fingers on the front rim of your pelvis or belt line. Place the thumbs level with the index fingers on the back just above the buttocks, on the pelvic rim, or belt line level. Something like in the picture below right is also ok. The figure in the illustration is not standing in the classic Type 1 position though. It’s the hands we’re concerned with.
There are probably a zillion ways to place the hands to experience the movement of the horizontal plane of the pelvic bowl. Just so you can feel the the horizontal plane of the top of the pelvic bowl, and your legs are in a classic Type 1 position. You should be able to feel the affect.
Hands positioned so the pelvic bowl horizontal plane can be sensed.
Now unlock the knees. Feel the pelvis tilt back. This is the more level position. Lock the knees back again in Type 1 position. Feel the pelvic bowl tilt to the front again.
Go back and forth. Lock the knees back. Unlock the knees again. Do it over and over. Feel how the pelvic bowl tilts to the front with the knees locked back. Feel how it tilts toward the back, or more level position, with the knees slightly bent.
In the skeleton on the right it’s easy to compare the pelvis to a bowl
The skeleton to the right gives a good overall illustration of the pelvis and how it is shaped like a “bowl”.
The importance of this movement of the pelvis when we assume these two positions reverberates through the entire body in a chain reaction. The immediate effect of this movement is it shows how the pelvic bowl tilts forward when you stand in Type 1 position.
When your pelvic bowl tilts forward, it’s contents, your intestines, spill out pushing against the abdominal wall. This gives you the “pot belly”. Many work hard to get rid of “potbelly” with sit ups or other methods. Simply developing a habit of standing the way your body is built to stand will keep that pot belly away now, and, as you age.
In future blogs I’ll focus on other parts of this chain reaction that are immediately affected by the way you stand. I’ll show how an immediate effect can be felt in various parts of the body when when Type 1 or Type 2 positioning is assumed. Subscribe to my newsletter and I’ll address individual concerns.
