Better Posture – Understanding Janda’s Syndromes

Professor Vladimir Janda was a medical doctor from the Czech Republic that was inspired to understand more deeply how the nervous system worked to control posture, muscular balance, and functional stability. His own struggle with Polio led him to a career specializing in neurology and, eventually, functional rehabilitation focusing on chronic pain syndromes. He founded a rehab clinic at Charles University in Prague where he dealt with some of the most complex cases of chronic pain. As a representative of the World Health Organization, Dr. Janda worked to start rehabilitation centers in several disadvantaged countries. He pushed the boundaries of our knowledge of the musculoskeletal system by conducting extensive Electromyography (EMG) studies and exploring how exercise and manual therapy can help to restore and maintain health.

The Syndromes

Please take a moment to look at your posture from the side using a mirror to compare what you see to these diagrams. The muscles labeled tight in these images tend to have a lowered threshold for activation; they are on a hair trigger and are easily irritated by overuse. The muscles labeled inhibited or weak have a raised threshold for activation; they work sluggishly and are often underused.

Upper Crossed Syndrome

Janda Upper Crossed Syndrome

This syndrome is marked by a forward head position and rounded shoulders. The modern trend toward increasing hours of computer and smartphone use has led many people into this pattern. Those who suffer from neck pain, shoulder pain, and headaches may have upper crossed syndrome.

Lower Crossed Syndrome

Janda Lower Crossed Syndrome

This syndrome is characterized by a forward pelvic tilt with a protruding abdomen and locked knees. Prolonged sitting applies too much pressure to the glute and hamstring muscles which inhibits their circulation and function. It’s important to get up each hour to walk for 3-5 minutes. People struggling with lower back pain or pain at the front of the hip may have lower crossed syndrome.

Layer Syndrome

Janda Layer Syndrome

This syndrome involves a combination of both upper and lower crossed syndromes. It’s likely that an individual would have more or less of one syndrome of the other. Although the most likely outcome of this presentation would be neck pain and back pain, the location and intensity of the pain may vary as the body becomes less coordinated. With enough muscle incoordination, abnormal forces acting on joint surfaces lead to degeneration, arthritis, and pinched nerves that, in turn, can increase muscle tension in a vicious circle.

How to change

Posture practice

Awareness of the problem is the first step. By acknowledging your tendency to fall into these patterns, you can fight them by taking action. Start by practicing good posture using a wall. Stand against the wall with your feet shoulder-width apart. Bend your knees slightly. Tense your stomach, feeling your belly button rise a bit. Also, tense your buttocks. Feel your head rise toward the ceiling while keeping your chin tucked–tensing the muscles in your throat. Pull your shoulders backward and downward, tensing your mid-back muscles. Breathe deeply and slowly and remain in this position for several minutes, stopping as soon as you start to feel pain or fatigue.

Standing Posture

Trigger point therapy

Applying pressure to the tight and overused muscles in the lower back, upper back, neck, and legs can be very helpful. I highly recommend the use of a foam roller or therapy ball to do this at home, at the gym, or at the office. Without a foam roller, a rolled towel with rubber bands will work and a tennis ball or lacrosse ball will be just fine. The idea is to lean your body weight against these tools to apply the pressure to the most sensitive areas of the muscle where knots exist. When you’ve pinpointed the problem area, maintain the pressure for 6-8 seconds before releasing it. Repeating this several times would bring about the best results.

Foam Roller