How Should I Stand

‍The Healing Structure: Because your Body Didn’t Come With A Manual

“Why Your Standing Posture Might Be Your Supervillain (And How to Outsmart It)”

Hey there!
Let’s talk about standing. Yes, standing. The thing you do when you wait in line for coffee, watch your kid chase pigeons at the park, or lean against the kitchen counter thinking, “Did I already reheat this coffee three times?”

As an osteopath, I watch people stand all day—and let me tell you, your standing posture is lowkey trying to mess with you. That’s where Wolff’s Law comes in.

🦴 Wait… What’s Wolff’s Law?

Wolff’s Law says your bones will adapt to the forces placed on them. Sounds smart, right? And it is… until those forces are a result of bad standing habits.

🚶‍♀️Real-Life Example Time:

Here’s what I see ALL the time:

• You stand with one leg flared out → your arch collapses.
• That creates torque at the knee → inner knee pain.
• The femur rotates → sciatic nerve gets compressed near the CF joint.
• External rotator muscles get tight, fibrotic, and angry.
• That tension reaches your SI joint and lower back.
• Eventually… hello, sciatica.

Another common pattern?
You shift your weight into one hip. Especially new moms—carrying babies on one hip all day, multitasking like superheroes. But over time, this can lead to hip degeneration, instability, and maybe even surgery risk down the road.

Or maybe you:

• Stand with a pelvis tilted forward → that loads your lower back like a stack of bricks.
• Put your center of gravity too far forward → tight calves, hamstrings, and plantar fasciitis.
• Or lean to one side and wonder why your body feels like it's been in a twisty yoga pose for 8 years straight.

🪢 Your Body’s Trying to Help… Until It’s Not

All of this is your body adapting to bad input.
Wolff’s Law doesn’t discriminate. It just says, “Oh, you want to stand like this forever? Cool, I’ll reinforce it with bone and tissue changes.”

And THAT’S where we interrupt the cycle.‍

‍

🕹 Let’s Play a Game: “Find Your Gravity”

Here’s a fun little “standing reset” game I give my patients. It’s NOT about standing perfectly all day. It’s about checking in with your body and giving it better feedback. Ready?

✅ Posture Reset Checklist:

1. Feet: Parallel if possible. Or just straighter than they were. (Don’t force anything in)
2. Hips: Level them out like you're carrying water on a tray.
3. Weight: Find a happy medium between your heels and the balls of your feet.
4. Pelvis: Gently tuck the pubic bone toward your face—hello, lower abs. (This is a workout, ease into this with breathing, hold to comfort and let go, something to casually work on throughout the day, never to force)
5. Abs: Pretend I’m lightly poking you in the belly—let the ribs drop down slightly.
6. Crown of Head: Picture a string pulling you gently upward.

Now:
💨 Take 10 deep, comfortable breaths in this position.
Repeat 4–6 times throughout the day—at the park, in line, at the copier, watching hockey (go team).

⚠️ Disclaimer: This should not cause pain, discomfort, or lightheadedness. If it does, your fascia may be pulling you out of alignment and it’s time to see your friendly neighborhood osteopath.

The Goal is that you naturally start finding this position as your neutral position, you have to make it a conscious effort before it can be unconscious. There should never be any strain or discomfort. Again it is okay to do other positions, we just want to get to the point where you come to this position more often and with ease

Work on this throughout the day

• when your cooking food
• Standing at the rink watching hockey
• Standing in line at the bank
• Make this a habit at any point through-out your day, find consistency throughout the day not just once or twice a day to see the true transformation over time

🧠 Tips for the Week:

• Don’t hold your posture like a statue—breathe into it.
• Mirror check: How’s your posture when you’re brushing your teeth?
• Set a phone reminder: “Where’s my weight right now?”
• Gamify it. Every time you catch yourself leaning or flaring out a foot, reset and breathe.

Remember: You don’t have to be perfect—just more aware.
Next time, we’ll dive deeper into how standing posture affects not just your muscles and bones, but also your digestion, circulation, and even mood. Stay tuned for Part 2 on Wednesday!

Coming Wednesday: “Wolff’s Law Goes Deep: How Your Standing Posture Impacts Everything (Yes, Even Your Organs)”

‍