Flared ribs go hand-in-hand with a hyperextended lower back. Now, I most often see this compensation in women, as they tend to have more ligament and tendon laxity, but it certainly plagues men as well. Any deviations from this resting posture equate to compensations galore. This means that your earlobes should be in line with your acromion (the pointy bone on the sides of your shoulders), the bottom of your ribcage should line up perfectly with your pelvis, and your ilium (the top of your pelvis) should be in line with your fibular head and your outer ankle bone (lateral malleolus). Ideally, everything from the earlobes to the ankles should form a nice straight line. As a result of this structural change, we see tons of inefficiencies and imbalances throughout the kinetic chain. Now, if both the head and the ribs deviate from one’s center of gravity, just imagine how much work the muscles in your hips have to do to combat the imbalance. Consider a building like the Leaning Tower of Pisa and how much work had to be done on the foundation of the building to keep it safe for tourists to visit.įor each inch that the head juts forward of its resting posture, the neck muscles have to support an additional 10 pounds of load. Now, an engineer or physicist could tell you (in much more depth) that the farther a load moves from its center of mass, the greater the pressure put on its structural system. Joint centration and alignment are important for optimal gait mechanics and efficiency of the human body as a whole. While it is valuable to note the position of the lower back and of the neck, I’ve had much success with addressing the rib position first. Many of these phrases effectively mean the same thing, or they go hand-in-hand. Many coaches and physical therapists discuss, at length, the importance of “proper posture.” They cite phrases like “hyperextension,” “lordosis,” “kyphosis,” “forward head posture,” “slouching,” and dozens of other buzzwords that incite concern within the client. Rib flare is one of the most common dysfunctions I see, yet so few people talk about it.
![rib flare rib flare](https://cdn.gutsgusto.com/pictures/full/60169.jpg)
![rib flare rib flare](https://i.pinimg.com/736x/05/84/ed/0584edde4f7273f18b1e1aaa5079ab67.jpg)
Do your ribs protrude out 1-2 inches in front of the rest of your body? Do you experience any type of musculoskeletal pain on a regular basis? If you’re wondering, “what the heck is a rib flare anyway?” then this article is for you.