November 12, 2021

"Sucking in the stomach and keeping your abdominal muscles tense as you go about your day might seem innocuous, but... [it] can have physical and mental consequences over time."

"Beyond potentially affecting the pelvic floor muscles, which are involved in posture, urination, bowel movements and sex, sucking in your gut all the time 'could alter the mechanics of your abdomen; it could alter its ability to respond to demands in the environment.... It could change your breath patterns.'... Habitually contracting your oblique abdominal muscles can exert force down on the pelvic floor muscles and potentially cause the pelvic floor to become overwhelmed, which could have consequences such as incontinence and pelvic organ prolapse.... 'When you activate those upper abdominal muscles, you’re creating an increase in intra-abdominal pressure at baseline.... Many people’s fixation with having a flat stomach, or at least the appearance of one, has largely been fueled by a well-intentioned idea about health and fitness — having a strong core — that has been taken to the extreme.... While you should engage those muscles if you’re lifting a barbell, you shouldn’t be tensing them at full strength when you’re standing in line at the grocery store.... Consistently sucking in your stomach could alter the appearance of your abdomen, including a protrusion of the lower abdomen and a flaring of the rib cage. To begin retraining your muscles, experts recommend consciously trying to relax and let your stomach out...."


Who knew this was a problem?! I suspect it's symbolic of a whole set of problems — shallow overachievement leaving you in worse condition than if you would just relax and take it easy. 

24 comments:

Mike (MJB Wolf) said...

I blame BMI tables. Being skinny just presents an illusion of good health. What government entity created those stupid BMI tables!

Howard said...

Vanity is a deadly sin. Stick your belly out like a Russian.

Achilles said...

I think fat people are getting the sadz.

There is a technique called vacuuming that body builders use when posing.

If you actually train your abdominal muscles to pull in different directions and to vacuum you will learn one thing. You get very tired sucking in your stomach. Nobody just walks around sucking their stomach in all of the time.

The journalist that wrote this story is probably fat and definitely stupid and ignorant about this subject.

WWIII Joe Biden, Husk-Puppet + America's Putin said...

Not a problem.

Sebastian said...

"Stop sucking in your stomach all the time"

Fortunately, some of us don't have to.

"Who knew this was a problem?!"

Not I. But they know who they are.

Achilles said...

Who knew this was a problem?! I suspect it's symbolic of a whole set of problems — shallow overachievement leaving you in worse condition than if you would just relax and take it easy.

Look up Gell-Mann affect.

The journalist that wrote this story is dumb.

Anyone who thinks they learned something reading this article should remember journalists are dumb people.

The Vault Dweller said...

If only the that first Drill Sergeant who yelled, "Suck in that Gut!" knew how much incalculable harm he was causing.

Owen said...

Slow news day for WaPo, I see.

TheOne Who Is Not Obeyed said...

Filed under "First World Problems" and "The Left Will Say This Is Racist".

madAsHell said...

If you suck-in-your-stomach, then you have less space to control your greenhouse gases, and you are contributing to global warming.

/to be sure.....that's sarcasm

rsbsail said...

I seriously doubt that this is a problem. After all, who goes around 24-7 sucking up their stomach? I mean, even narcissists would lose attention after a few hours.

tim in vermont said...

"What government entity created those stupid BMI tables!"

I think you could create one yourself by doing a scatterplot of weight and height against health outcomes and it would be pretty close.

Rollo said...

Last month the Pelvic Floor Council was telling us not to pee in the shower.

I think they are after complete power. After COVID and climate change, the next big issue will be preserving the pelvic floor, something apparently as fragile as the oceans and their own floors.

Whenever I hear the words "pelvic floor" I am reminded of the 1970s anti-drug spot where the kid says that drugs can damage your chromosomes and the pusher says "How do you know you got chromosomes?"

Today, almost everybody knows about chromosomes, but who knew our pelvises had floors? And to get from one to the other do we take the stairs or is there an elevator?

Narayanan said...

is this different from keeping your core toned or is the writer conflating?

Scot said...

"Pelvic organ prolapse" got my attention. Nobody wants intimate body parts falling out.

Hammond X. Gritzkofe said...

The zen of breathing. Passive inhale; relax the abdomen, allow gut to fall. Active exhale; compress the abdomen to expel air. Contrast with active inhale by expanding chest; passive exhale by allowing chest to fall.

Narr said...

I think the BMI was devised by a French doctor in about 1890. An army doctor.

I've still got too much gut, even after losing a lot of weight. Plus, I alternately suck in and pooch out my belly a lot. It's a practice that I developed as a kid with a lot of allergies and trouble breathing--in my theory, anyway, it's helping the poor lungs.

I do it standing, walking, and lying down; not as easy, sitting down.

Jimmy said...

Taichi and other Chinese meditation techniques teach people to "lift up" their coccygeal muscles, specifically to counteract the increased abdominal pressure when working the core and deep ab breathing.

The reason they give, is that the front and back meridians connect at 2 points, tongue-palate and perineum (basically). "Lifting" the perineum connects one end of the meridians. With the other end connected, then chi can circulate.

What's emanating from your penumbra said...

"Consistently sucking in your stomach could ..."

We're not saying it does, but it could!

Richard Aubrey said...

Is it okay to do it at a high school reunion?

My father was an all-conference end at UConn, last season 1942. According to BMI, he was overweight. His next gig, six months of Infantry combat, brought him down to an acceptable weight.
I was 6'2", 205 when I got out of OCS. A month later, the famous, fearsome physical requirements of jump school were...a joke. I'd have been overweight by the BMI table.

Prepping the battle space, I told my primary care guy. Although a sociable and competent doctor with nothing to prove and a career moving quite well, he seemed a bit unsettled. Made me wonder....

Leora said...

Next they'll tell us standing up straight is bad for us.

heyboom said...

I've been doing it since my military days. The reason I do it is it promotes good posture while I'm moving about. Not 24/7 of course.

cfkane1701 said...

This reminds me of an old George Carlin joke. From a bit where it was just "news" snippets.

"Scientists have discovered that saliva causes stomach cancer, but only when swallowed in small amounts over a long period of time."

Greg The Class Traitor said...

"Could" is what you say when your position is total bullshit, and you know it.

It doesn't matter what you do, it "could" cause bad things. If they don't have solid numbers, and solid backup for those numbers, they're worthless shit, and should be ignored