Good Posture for Crochet: Set your body up for success!
Good posture for crocheting is critical to preventing pain and injury. Read about proper body alignment along with tips to help you maintain it.
Good posture for crochet and proper body alignment
We’ve heard all our lives to stand tall, to keep our shoulders back, and to hold our heads high. How many times did you hear from your mom/grandma, “Stand up straight”?
Turns out, it’s really important. And, good posture for crocheting is a critical component of a healthy, sustained crochet practice.
Knowing how to properly align your body is the first step to achieving good posture while crocheting. What is body alignment, anyway?
Disclaimer: I am not a medical professional and this article should not be viewed as medical advice. I am trained in Somatic Voice Work, something I used extensively in my years as a professional singer and voice instructor. I’ve also had 50+ years of crochet experience with observations on a host of crochet issues.
What is body alignment?
Body alignment is really just a fancy way of saying “good posture”. More importantly, when your body is properly aligned, you will automatically have good posture.
Technically, body alignment refers to how the head, shoulders, spine, hips, knees and ankles relate to and line up with each other. When standing, think of body alignment as stacking your body in a way that every part sits in a balanced way on top of each other.
Good posture can mean different things to different people. The old adage “Shoulders back and spine straight” only gets you so far. Body alignment is more specific and offers guidance about how to achieve good posture.
Proper body alignment means that your bones are aligned in a way so that your joints and muscles can work properly. When it comes to crocheting, this can be even more important for preventing pain and even injury.
Proper body alignment and good posture are critical parts of crochet as self care.
Good posture is the correct alignment of body parts supported by the right amount of muscle tension.
Cindy Ann Peterson
Why is proper body alignment important, especially in crochet?
If you spend as much time crocheting as I do, you know that feeling body fatigue and experiencing pain can be a common occurrence. Anything we can do to prevent that is to our advantage and makes crocheting a pleasant experience.
Here are some reasons why good posture and proper body alignment are so important to crocheters:
- It keeps the body in an optimal position, one where the body is working in harmony.
- It helps avoid strain on muscles and joints.
- It prevents chronic pain that can often be caused by the repetitive motion of crochet (or any other activity).
We often view crochet as a hobby or a leisure time activity. That doesn’t mean ignoring good posture is OK.
What does proper body alignment look like for crocheters?
As a general rule, crocheters must sit to crochet. Yes, there are gadgets that make it possible for us to crochet while standing. But, crochet is generally a seated activity.
The normal position for crocheting, sitting in a chair, pulls the entire upper body forward and in on itself:
- Shoulders slump forward, creating a rounded upper back and shortened muscles on the front of the arms.
- Elbows might be elevated, raising the shoulders above where they should be.
- Looking down causes the neck to curve and the head to fall forward.
Good posture while crocheting isn’t always an easy fix because often the positions listed above feel more comfortable…until they don’t. I’ll set you up with some guidelines for body positioning.
Fortunately, good posture – like bad posture – is habit forming.
Denise Austin
Let’s get ourselves aligned!
Keep in mind that, any time you try to adjust your body to a position that isn’t normal for you, you may feel uncomfortable. That doesn’t mean the position is wrong. It’s simply different and will take some getting used to.
Don’t be afraid to make some adjustments for good posture, especially if you happen to be experiencing pain.
Your shoulders should be back and your chest open.
To find where your shoulders should be, do the following:
- Stand up and let your hands hang at your sides.
- Move your shoulders backward and forward until the palms of your hands lie flat against the sides of your thighs.
- Now, feel where your shoulders are. They may feel too far back but they aren’t.
- When you sit, try to get your shoulders in the same position.
Your elbows should be in a neutral position.
Be sure to support your elbows with either the arm of your chair or a pillow in your lap. Keep them in a position that prevents your shoulders from rising or drooping.
Keep your head balanced over your spine.
There are 2 ways to look down. It’s important to choose the correct one. Hint: it’s the second one!
- Bend your entire neck forward from your shoulders. When you do this, the weight of your head (it’s pretty heavy) is pulling on your neck muscles and upper spine, causing continual strain. This one is incorrect.
- Keep your neck straight and tilt your head to look down. This is the way the body is built to look down. It keeps your head balanced over your spine and shoulders and prevents stress and strain. Choose this one!
Now, let’s get your space set up to promote good posture.
How to set up your favorite crochet space to foster good posture
Where you sit and what you surround yourself with is really important for good posture while crocheting. Here’s what you need to know:
Your chair should be comfortable first and foremost. It should support your legs and hips in a neutral way that discourages low back and hip pain. If you still need a little lumbar (lower back) support, tuck a little pillow into that curved space.
Your elbows should be supported to keep your shoulders in a neutral position. Make sure your chair has arms that are at the right height for crocheting. If not, grab a pillow and put it on your lap.
Lighting around your chair should be bright enough to easily see the project you’re crocheting. Good floor and table lighting on either side of the chair usually does the trick. But, if you’re working with a dark colored yarn or just need a little extra light, a neck lamp (like the Lumos lamp) is an easy way to remedy the issue.
Remember, it’s not just proper body alignment and good posture that are important. You need a space that will support you while you crochet.
Other posts in this series
If you’re looking for ways to relieve stress and anxiety with crochet, these 2 articles offer some helpful information.
Links to helpful articles
Let’s wrap it up!
We crocheters are a hearty bunch, aren’t we?! We crochet for long hours because we love it so much. Because of that, we owe it to ourselves to sit in a way that prevents pain and injury. Good posture while you crochet will keep you crocheting for as long as you want!
Take some time to get your body aligned and find the good posture you need for crocheting!
Happy crocheting 🌸 Debbie
