Poor posture could affect your game

Lantern blogger Ariel Kohane reveals that the way you walk could attract or detract the opposite sex

By Ariel Kohane

kohane.2@osu.edu

Published: Wednesday, November 18, 2009

Updated: Thursday, November 19, 2009

Ariel Kohane

Ariel Kohane

Question: Does walking or standing weirdly affect your game?

Answer: Of course it shouldn't, but it does.


On campus, I see girls looking like hunchbacks and boys swaying back and forth like gorillas. So let's lay it all out on the table shall we? Walking like a duck is not sexy, walking with the turned in knees is not sexy and the worst is the slightly turned in dragging foot. Other strange sights include boys with fake limps and girls with their butts out hurrying to and fro like little chickens.

Call me a bitch but let's be honest with ourselves, the way people walk affects our view of them, including if we're attracted to them or not.

Last week I met this boy outside of the SEL. We totally hit it off and exchanged numbers. But when I saw him walk away I knew I would not be calling him back. Hips forward, torso held, neck stiff. Stand up and try walking around your apartment like that. It looks ridiculous!

On a similar note, the way we stand has the same impact as the way we walk. But when we stand people can stare at us for longer periods of time and deduce more from our posture. An example: A guy could be the straightest guy in the whole world, but if his hip is swished to one side and his weight is on that same side's hip, everyone's wondering about his sexual orientation. The girl with her neck forward and shoulders hunched cold be the most confident girl in the whole world even though she's giving the impression that she's either malnourished or needs to be saved.

This week's blog entry is not supposed to endow you with enlightening advice. I simply felt the need to acknowledge how important it is to have an awareness of your body and the way your body moves in space and the message it might send whether you mean to or not. It's shallow, it really is, and I'm ashamed that it matters to me. But I wouldn't be writing about it if I didn't think it was true and that most of us discriminate against potential partners based on posture and their walk.

Comments

9 comments
Chunshen Li
Wed Sep 8 2010 00:13
Posture also reveals an individual's intelligence and maturity level in a way.
Louise
Mon Nov 23 2009 13:48
Ohhh nothing makes me more annoyed then guys who do the fake-limp/swagger sort of thing. Especially if they are holding their pants up by the crotch. Not sexy!
chica
Sun Nov 22 2009 13:02
Thanks for the article. I am one of those girls who used to sit slumped with my neck forward. It's been a struggle to change, but worth it. I hope this article can help others become aware of their posture too.
Brandon
Sun Nov 22 2009 07:59
Wow, Katy. You totally missed the point of this article. I bet youre the type who is sitting around waiting to get offended. You probably watch more Fox News that you do than the bleeding heart news outlets. I bet youre the type who believes Gitmo detainees should be freed and given free room and board here in Columbus.

This article is supposed to be stating the obvious, but from these comments, its fallen on deaf ears.

G-code
Fri Nov 20 2009 17:20
awww whats the matter. are most guys walkin to urban for you? i walk perfectly and cant get a real woman, one who actually has career money in her designer purse.
Katy
Fri Nov 20 2009 10:00
Wow. Ever consider that the duck walk, turned in knees or the dragging foot are birth defects? People that walk like that don't do so on purpose. "Awareness of your body?" I feel like these people are more aware of their bodies than anyone else. Pigeon toed people don't want to walk the way they do. What an unbelievably stupid and offensive article.
Richard Lauer
Fri Nov 20 2009 08:29
I'm a former Buckeye ahtlete ,transplanted in Texas, of all places. Down here it's the hoody/ gangsta walk for the males. As a girls coach for 40 years, it sickens me. Pretty good article. Go Bucks!!
The Dude
Fri Nov 20 2009 07:49
Well Dude, unlike the Bill Clinton, we weren't voting for a president as a sexual partner...
Dude
Fri Nov 20 2009 04:13
". . .the worst is the slightly turned in dragging foot."

If only voters had noticed this last year. Anyone ever watch Obama's walk?

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