Purpose of Body Mechanics

Body mechanics--known as biomechanics in the scientific world--applies mechanical principles to living organisms. In the fitness world, this refers to your body's actions. Your body's structure is made up of bones, joints and muscle, which act as levers and forces. Your muscles develop tension when you move, pulling your bones along with your body weight. With physics in mind, there's an optimal way to stand and move with gravity working in your favor.

Significance

Proper body mechanics are important for alignment, movement and creating a balanced musculature. When your body moves properly, your joints move in their normal range; the intended joints mobilize while others stabilize. If your body is weak, tight or muscular imbalances exist, your body mechanics can become faulty. Inefficient movements occur, which can lead to poor posture, muscle tightness and a propensity for injury.

Awareness

Understanding your muscle-skeletal structure is important if you want to learn proper mechanics. Key concepts begin with postural awareness when you're sitting, standing and walking. Start with your bones, their shape and purpose. Your bones are your body's foundation for alignment. Understanding where your bones are in space and how they should move will give you a better understanding of proper mechanics.

Benefits

Applying a biomechanical awareness to everyday life will help you move more efficiently while decreasing your potential for injury. An increased awareness of these mechanics also will help you perform everyday tasks more optimally. Though it may seem simple, learning how to stand, sit, walk and lift objects in a mechanically sound manner takes practice. However, you will reap the rewards by feeling supported and in control.

Posture

When you stand with proper posture, your weight is distributed between all your joints. Your muscle tone is balanced between both sides of your body. Deep muscles support your trunk, keeping the ideal curves in your spine. Your ears, shoulders, hips, knees and ankles are in line. This posture is ideal because gravitational pull supports this alignment. Your muscles can contract in excess, causing tightness, when your spine and hips start to deviate from this ideal.

Physical Fitness

Apply body mechanics to your fitness routine. WestchesterTotalHealth.com uses the example of an incorrect biceps curl. If you notice your lower back is moving in space when you perform a basic biceps curl, the weight likely is too heavy. Your biceps cannot perform the exercise without recruiting additional muscles. To perform the exercise properly--and avoid potential strain--lift lighter weights and stabilize your trunk. The clearer you are with your focus, the better your mechanics will become.