Apparently, good posture makes you act more confident. And, as I’ve said before, it makes you look slimmer as well as being critical to maintaining a healthy back.

It’s pretty simple. Stand up straight, sit up tall. Do a self-check every so often; imagine you have a book on your head (surly you’ve heard that before). As you imagine the book on your head, pull your belly button in toward your spine, open your chest and think like you’re squeezing something between your shoulder blades. Voila! Posture perfect. Now hold that, and check yourself every hour.

Okay, so maybe it’s easier said than done. Obviously exercise and flexibility help. Start by making sure you don’t neglect your back muscles when working out. Especially the rhomboids. They keep the shoulder blades in place, weak or tense rhomboids are the main cause of hunching. Try this super easy move to strengthen your back:

Lie facedown on a mat with your arms by your sides, palms down. Squeeze your shoulder blades together, lift your chest and arms off the floor, hold for two seconds. Do this 30 times. When you’re done with those, give your back a little stretch by spending a minute or two in Childs Pose.

If you need more, there are special chairs you can buy, you can sit on a stability ball, or the latest trend is something called a Posture Shirt. Read up on them if you want but basically it’s a girdle for your upper body. They’re super tight so you have no choice but to stand up straight. Frankly, I think you should just pay attention to your posture and practice the moves I suggested above.

Off you go…