benefit of sitting up straight (blog.bufferapp.com)

 I declare that I have terrible posture if I don’t remind myself about it, its been worst since high school, probably worst in primary school but of course I didn’t know any better, years of sports and muscle imbalance and I blame my ego to keep lifting heavy weights and forget about all the tiny muscles and deep stretches that i should invest my time in. 

While I’m having my Chai tea latte, have u tried it? Why does it taste so good and too sweet for my liking but I can deal with it,but 6 bucks for this drink? I could eat a meal but I need wi-fi, so good trade after all and watching people buy 2 fraps just because it’s buy 1 get 1 free, and they are literally drinking both!!! Im sure if no one else is drinking we can opt not to have it, but we all love free things don't we? so frap away folks.

So here's a gist of whats important in this amazing article i came across ( citation ) read it because sitting up straight is not just about looking good but maintaining a healthy spine.
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Body language is closely related to posture—the way we move our bodies affects how others see us as well as our own moods and habits. In terms of scientific research, the two overlap quite a bit. This isn’t too surprising, but how our posture and body language affect our thoughts is.

For instance, a study at Ohio State University in 2003 found that our opinions can be subsconsciously influenced by our physical behavior. Here are two fascinating examples:

• When participants in the study nodded in agreements or shook their heads to signal disagreement, these actions affected their opinions without them realizing.
• The same study also showed that when participants hugged themselves, they were sometimes able to reduce their physical pain.

Here are three fascinating things that happened once our posture changes:

1. For example, when we sit up straight, we are more likely to remember positive memories or think of something positive in general, according to this experiment.
2. Another insight was that if we skip during breaks, we can significantly increase our energy levels. A slow, slumped walk on the other hand, can do the exact opposite and drain us of our energy. (source)
3. The study also found that those who were most affected by depression before the study found their energy drained more than others.

So Erik Peper is convinced (and I am, too) that we should keep a careful eye on our posture and body language--lest it bring us down without us realizing.


Posture also changes our hormones

Standing tall literally makes you more powerfulWhen we talk more broadly of body language, as opposed to good posture, we can actually see the affects it has on relationships right throughout the animal kingdom. In particular, body language is used to express power, through expansive postures (i.e. spreading out your limbs and opening up your body) and large body size (or the simple perception of large body size).

You might know about Amy Cuddy’s famous Ted Talk and her incredible insights on how posture changes our hormone levels. Well, some even more recent studies took this even further:

A study by researchers from Columbia and Harvard Universities showed that body language symbolizing power can actually affect our decision-making, subconsciously. The researchers measured the appetite for risk of participants in either expansive, powerful poses, or contricted poses (occupying minimal space, keeping limbs close to the body). Those in the powerful poses not only felt more powerful and in control, but were 45% more likely to take a risky bet.

Why there is no “one best” posture 
and how to improve yours?
So if you want to take advantage of these proven benefits to live a healthier and happier life, where should you start? We know that there is a large amount of different areas that can be painful when we have bad posture. Here’s just a short list of them:

Unfortunately there’s not a whole lot of research into how exactly to adopt good posture—a lot of what we know tends to come from being told to “sit up straight” as children. A study in 1999, however, found that sitting at an angle of 110-130 degrees is optimal for spine comfort, and another in 2007 showed that leaning back at 135 degrees is ideal for preventing back strain.

Believe it or not! 8 years ago my shoulder is so rounded i don't even know about it, when i have photo shoots, the photographers have to tell me not to slouch! its not pretty but hey habit takes time and I'm working on mine so should you.