Posture

Question 1

Toes

Answer 1

• should be strait
• should extend forward in line with foot

Faulty

• hammer toes (wearing toes too short)
• bunion (hallux valgus) (wearing shoes that are too narrow)

Question 2

Foot

Answer 2

• longitudinal arch has the shape of a half dome
• feet toe out slightly in shoes or barefoot
• in heels, feet are parallel
• in walking; feet are parallel and weight is transferred from ball of foot along outer border to the ball of the foot

Faulty

• low longitudinal arch or flat foot
• low metatarsal arch
• weight borne on inner side of foot (pronation)
• weight borne on outer border of foot (supination)
• toeing out while walking or standing with heels
• toeing in while walking or standing

Question 3

Knees and legs

Answer 3

• legs are straight up and down
• kneecaps face ahead
• no hyperextension or flexion

Faulty

• knees touch when feet are apart
• knees are apart when feet touch
• knee curves slightly backward
• knee bends slightly forward
• kneecaps face slightly toward each other
• kneecaps face slightly outward

Question 4

Hips, pelvis, and spine BACK VIEW

Answer 4

• body weight is evenly on both feet and hips are level
• spine does not curve left or right

Faulty

• hip is higher than other
• hips are rotated so that one is farther forward than the other

Question 5

spine and pelvis side view

Answer 5

• front of pelvis and thighs are in a streait line
• buttocks is not prominent in back but slope downward slightly
• sacral curve is fixed curve

Faulty

• low back arches too forward
• pelvis tilts forward too much
• low back curve has straightened
• pelvis tilts too far back
• increase in backward curve of upper back
• increased forward curve in neck
• lateral curve of spine (scoliosis)

Question 6

abdomen

Answer 6

• up to age 10, abdomen protrudes
• older children and adults, should be flat

Faulty

• entire abdomen protrudes
• lower part of abdomen protrudes while upper part is pulled in

Question 7

chest

Answer 7

• slightly up and slightly forward
• chest appears to be in a position about halfway between that of full inspiration and a forced expiration

Faulty

• depressed or hollow chest position
• lifted or held up too high, arching back
• ribs more prominent on one side than the other
• lower ribs flaring out or protruding

Question 8

arms and shoulders

Answer 8

• palms face body, elbows slightly bent, forearms hang slightly forward
• shoulders are level and neither is forward or backward
• shoulder blades light flat against rib cage, 4 inches of separation is normal

Faulty

• arms held stiff in forward, backward, or out from body
• palms face back
• one shoulder higher than other
• both shoulders hiked up
• one shoulder rotated
• shoulder blades pulled back to hard or too far apart
• winging scapula

Question 9

head

Answer 9

• head is held erect in a position of good balance

Faulty

• chin up too high
• head protruding forward, head tilted or rotated to one side

Question 10

Plumb line alignment

Answer 10

• slightly posterior to coronal suture
• through external auditory meatus
• through axis of odontoid process
• midway through tip of shoulder
• through bodies of lumbar vertebrae
• slightly posterior to hip joint
• slightly anterior to axis of knee joint
• slightly anterior to lateral malleolus
• through calcaneocuboid joint