What is linear alignment?
Well, in terms of exercise, it refers to the proper positioning
of your body (shoulders to hips to knees to ankles/feet) and
placing it in balance to achieve the maximum benefits from your
movements. This concept will make any exercise more effective.
What is linear alignment?
Well, in terms of exercise, it refers to the proper positioning of your body (shoulders to hips to knees to ankles/feet) and placing it in balance to achieve the maximum benefits from your movements. This concept will make any exercise more effective.
How do you achieve linear alignment?
Linear alignment is most easily achieved starting from the bottom and working your way up. Take one section of your body at a time and focus on its position. Let begin with the feet.
In most cases, place your feet facing forward. There should be no turnout of the toes. They should be hip width apart. Now I have seen many people over the years who think that their hips are much wider than they really are (more like in line with the shoulders). If you are unsure about where your hip bones lie in relation to the rest of your body, try this little trick: place the heel of your left foot against the instep of your right one forming a “T.” Then simply pivot your left foot straight, and there you go.
Moving up, bend your knees slightly, but no further than to the ends of your toes. If you have knee problems, only go as far as you can comfortably.
Going further up, tuck your rear end. This is very important for lower back protection. And at the same time, pull your stomach in. Now your lower body is in alignment. But we are not stopping there.
As you tuck your bottom, you might find that your ribs have moved down and your shoulders have come forward. As such, now you lift your ribs up off your hips and roll your shoulders back and down. Your shoulders should be positioned directly over your hip bones. They should also be aligned with your ears. Quite often I see people pull their shoulders back, and in the process jut their head forward. Since the neck is part of the spine, the head should be in line with everything else.
Keeping the shoulders back and down requires the engagement of the “lats” (latissimus dorsi muscle that runs along the sides of your back).
Furthermore, we need to consider the alignment of the wrist to elbow and elbow to shoulder, but this will also depend on the exercise you are doing.
Using a mirror will help you achieve this goal. It is important to see (and feel) that you in the right position and not inadvertently leaning forwards or backwards. The position may feel a little strange at first since most of us are so used to being out of alignment.
Being in proper linear alignment will put your body in balance. It will set the body up for the muscles to be in the best position to maximize their contractions and get the most benefit from the exercise by encouraging full muscle activation.
Another great reason for working out in linear alignment: core strength. In the correct position, upper body form connects with lower body form and everything works together. This is important for total body support and injury avoidance.
Brain-to-muscle connection is also reached when working in the proper position. Signals travel up the spine, so if the path is not straight, the communication may not be received.
So, restating my question: why is proper linear alignment important? Simply put, the body is a machine and all the parts of the machine must work together. If it is assembled correctly, it will function correctly.
