Common Postural Deformities-Our posture deviates from anatomical

position and causes various postural deformities. They are knock knee, kyphosis,
lordosis, flat foot, bow legs, scoliosis etc.

Posture-Posture varies from person to person. Posture means position or pose.

The person carries himself while standing, sitting, walking, sleeping, running,
eating etc. There are numerous concepts and views regarding human posture and
its significance.

‘’Body segments are balanced in the position.’’

Causes of Posture Deformities-Various causes that result in postural

deformities are-

1. Bad habits or faulty posture

2. Weak bones or muscles
3. Excessive body weight
4. Due to accident
5. Due to disease
6. Lack of exercise
7. Overstraining of muscles

Knock knee-When a person stands erect with his feet close together, then
there should be a gap between the knees. If there is no gap, the knees touch or
overlap. This deformity is called knock knee. This is caused due to the weak
muscles and ligaments of knees.

Remedial Exercise -
1. Massage under expert’s guidance.
2. Reduce your weight by regular exercise and yoga.

3. Sit with legs crossed and now press your knees in downward direction.

4. Do Padamasana

5 .Walk and avoid prolonged standing.

Kyphosis-It is an abnormal increase in flexion of the spine, i.e. outer curvature

of spine with round shoulders, head dropping forward, resulting in a hump
towards the back. It is mainly caused due to wrong habit of standing.

Remedial exercise -
1. Do bhujangasana, Chakarasana, Dhanurasana regularly

2. Hold your hands back then slowly stretch them backward.

3. Leaning back on a chair and taking shoulders backward can help to stretch the
chest muscles.

4. Arm stretching backward and bring the chest forward.

Lordosis-Lordosis is also known as hollow back deformity of posture. There is

exaggerated lumber curve in lower back area, chest broadens, and shoulder go
back, abdominal muscles are moved forward. This is mainly due to loose
abdominal wall and obesity.

Remedial exercise –
1. Perform halasana and paschimuttanasana

2. Do sit ups slowly.

3. It is necessary to develop the strength of abdominal muscles.

4. Sitting on a chair bring the head/nose close to the knees.

Bow leg- Bow leg is also called rickets. This is a posture defect in which the
lower long bones of the legs get bent. This results in an unnatural gait leading to
uneasiness walking and running.

Remedial exercise –
1. Put pillow between legs and try to walk.

2. Never stand for long hours

3. Give children extra calcium and never force infant to make them stand or walk
too early in life

Flat foot-It means no arch in the foot and foot totally flat which may give rise to
pain in foot. It may happen due to loss of muscles supporting the foot which
results in flattening of the arch. It is mainly caused by being overweight and
prolonged standing.

Remedial exercise –
1. Walk in toes.
2. Picking the objects with toes.
3. Stretching of toes and heels downward.
 4. Wearing good quality shoes with arc must be worn.

Scoliosis- Scoliosis is a postural defect in which there is one large lateral curve
extending through the whole length of spine. It is mostly associated with some
loss of strength in all the body muscles.

Remedial exercise –
1. Spinal exercise of flexion, extension, rotation, sideward flexion for
developing strength in spinal extensions.
2. Do Trikonasana.
3. Hanging oneself on horizontal bar.
4. It improves the quality of life. In our daily life a physically fit person can
manage the routine work efficiently.

Special Considerations Associated with Physiology

Special care should be taken by sportswomen because of the problems associated with
their physiology. Problems faced by women during their life are

Menarche
Menarche is a girl’s first menstrual period. It can happen as early as age 9 or up to age
15. During this time, girls feel tense and emotional. So special attention should be given
to them at this time. As a sportsperson, a young woman has to take special care of
herself at that time.

Menstrual Dysfunction
Due to participation of women in physical fitness and competitive endurance sports, the
incidence of menstrual dysfunction has increased. Long distance . running and other
sports may lead to alterations in androgen, estrogen and progesterone hormones,
which in some women may directly or indirectly result in amenorrhea (absence of
menstrual periods) or infertility.
Female Athlete Triad
The ‘female athlete triad’ is a syndrome of three related conditions generally seen in
teenage or adult female athletes who aren’t meeting their energy requirements, which
ultimately leaves them undernourished. This also affects their performance severely.
The three components of the female athlete triad include

1. Osteoporosis It is a condition in which bones become weak and brittle. It occurs

when the body loses too much bone, makes too little bones or both.
2. Amenorrhea It is the absence of menstruation periods ‘that can-happen for many
reasons. Main causes are
genetic abnormalities, excessive exercise and extreme physical or psychological
stress.
3. Eating Disorders It refers to either eating in excessive amounts or eating in very
little amounts. This disorder is related to mental illness and affects a – person’s
physical and. mental health. A female athlete can have one, two, or all three parts
of the triad.