The Mayo Clinic says that there is a test you can use to check posture. To do this, stand against a wall with three things touching the wall: your head, your shoulder blades, and your bottom. Keep your heels somewhere between two and four inches away from the wall. Now place your palms against the wall and slide them directly behind the curve in your back. Your goal is to “feel about one hand’s thickness of space behind your back and the wall.”
If your body doesn’t line up, adjust your posture. For example, in the case of too much space, you can tighten your abs. And if there is ample space, you can arch your back. This will adjust your hands, which will tell you that you’re standing correctly. Next, walk while holding this posture.
6. Look in the mirror to check posture.
According to Today, a simple mirror check can be helpful in the process of practicing good posture. This can give visual confirmation of whether or not your posture is correct.
“Look in the mirror. If your palms face your thighs with the thumbs pointing ahead, that’s good posture,” Peggy W. Brill, a physical therapist based in New York City and spokesperson for the American Physical Therapy Association tells Today. “But if your palms face backwards, you’re probably slouching.”