We often hear: This was my posture before strengthening my rhomboids, and this is my posture after. Or, Here’s my posture before I stretched my pecs, and here’s the after.
But let’s be real—this approach is missing the bigger picture. In fact, this recent systematic review (Warneke et al 20024)found that stretching offers no real benefit for improving posture, whether in the short or long term. While some studies suggest strengthening exercises can reduce forward head posture or thoracic kyphosis, I remain skeptical of those conclusions.
You see, outside of cases like rigid kyphosis or neurological conditions, the biggest factor influencing posture isn’t muscle tightness or weakness—it’s how we feel about ourselves and our bodies.
If someone feels broken, or believes their body is flawed and they’ve been told they have bad posture, they’ll naturally adopt a more stooped position. No amount of stretching or bracing will change that inner narrative.
On the flip side, exercising and moving often makes us feel good, which might explain why we see improvements in posture. It’s not that rhomboid weakness is causing bad posture any more than weakness in the zygomaticus major (the muscle that helps you smile) causes someone to frown.
If you want someone to smile more, you don’t strengthen their face muscles—you help them feel better about themselves. The same goes for standing tall. Improve how someone feels about themselves, and their posture will often follow.
The idea that a magic stretch or strengthening exercise will fix posture is an oversimplification. Outside of medical cases, posture reflects how we carry ourselves emotionally. Confident or self-critical?
The way we feel is the foundation of how we stand
…and if you truly feel good about yourself and who you are, even if you have a kyphotic posture, it is frankly irrelevant!