Yes, rounded shoulders can be corrected. With body awareness, stretches and some alignment coaching from a chiropractor you can square off those rounded shoulders.

Do you have rounded shoulders?

Rounded shoulders is when the body leans forward out of alignment.  Slouching or leaning forward while we work, relax, stand and even use our phones are the most commonplace moments. We often slouch and lean without even knowing it. This causes our shoulders to round. This hunched posture is not good for your alignment.

Look in a mirror look to see if your knuckles are facing forward or if they are off to the side. If they are facing forward it could be from your shoulders slouching. Try pulling your shoulders back to notice the difference in your knuckles.

When this poor posture goes unnoticed the body will naturally end up in this rounded position. This puts strain on the shoulder joints which can lead to pain in the neck, back and lower back. Do you get headaches? Rounded shoulders can also be a root cause due to poor circulation which causes headaches.

How do we fix rounded shoulders?

You can start right now. Having body awareness is the first key to straightening out the spine. Put a post it note on your desk or set an alarm that has you check your posture. When you check-in and notice you are slouching, pull your shoulders back. Maybe even get up for a couple stretches.

Stretches are important. We don’t always have time to work out. We can stretch our neck using one hand over the head to gently pull left then right. Raise both hands and pull them back trying to get your shoulder blades to touch.

Exercising will also help build strength in the upper body to prevent the shoulders from rolling.

The most informative option is to reach out to your chiropractor to schedule an appointment. They will assess your posture and the effect it has on your alignment. They will give you an exercise routine to get you back to standing tall.