Most of us assume back pain, stiffness, or aching knees are signs of ageing, or we just accept them as fate. But, they are often neither. In many cases, the real cause is far more ordinary, such as how we sit at work, how long we stay still, and how we use our phones. These small, everyday habits don’t just cause discomfort; over time, they change the shape and mechanics of the body itself.
According to Dr Vaibhav Bagaria, Director of Orthopaedics and Joint Replacement at Sir H N Reliance Foundation Hospital, bones don’t change overnight, but habits are very powerful and able to rewrite the anatomy that we gain.
So what are we really doing to our bodies, without realising it?
1. Prolonged sitting changes the shape of the body
The first thing that Dr Bagaria points out, in a conversation with Business Standard, is all the
prolonged sitting that we have become so prone to.
He says that while sitting itself is not evil, prolonged sitting, say for ten hours a day, day after day, is where the trouble begins.
Dr Bagaria says he now sees young IT professionals with hips as stiff as those of people twenty years older than them. Tight hip flexors, weak glutes, rounded upper backs, early spinal wear, which are the conditions that were once associated with ageing, are showing up far earlier.
The body adapts to what it does most. Sit long enough, and it starts believing that sitting is its natural shape.
2. Phone use reshaping spine
Take a moment and notice how you are
holding your phone right now. Head bent forward, shoulders rolled in, and your neck taking the load of a bowling ball balanced at an awkward angle. Dr Bagaria half-jokingly calls this the “Indian nodding spine”, a posture so common that it is becoming normalised.
"Patients walk in with neck pain, headaches, and tingling in their hands. What’s really happening is structural stress. Over the years, the anatomy adjusts to the screen, not the other way around," he says.
3. Footwear choices affect knees and back
Soft slippers, heavily cushioned shoes, and zero barefoot time weaken foot muscles. This results in bunions, flat feet, and plantar fascia pain, even in people who’ve never played sports or had injuries.
According to Dr Bagaria, when the feet stop doing their job, the problem doesn’t stay there. It travels upwards, to the knees, hips, and spine. "Anatomy works as a chain. Ignore one link, and the strain migrates," he says.
4. Breathing and posture show up as fatigue, bloating, or anxiety
Slouched sitting and shallow chest breathing limit diaphragm movement. Dr Bagaria sees patients with neck tightness, fatigue, bloating, and even anxiety-like symptoms. He says the body keeps a score of the way they sit and breathe all day.
When does a harmless habit stop being harmless?
Usually, when it becomes daily, long, and unopposed, says Dr Bagaria. "Sitting isn’t bad. Sitting for ten hours without movement is. Using a phone isn’t harmful. Using it with your head bent for years is."
He warns that while the body keeps adjusting for a long time, by the time it starts complaining, anatomy has often already shifted.
Why do women face unique anatomical consequences?
Dr Bagaria sees pelvic floor issues, back pain, and bone loss far more commonly in women, especially after childbirth and around menopause.
Poor core recovery, chronic straining, low resistance training, and nutritional gaps quietly alter pelvic and spinal mechanics. Many women accept leakage or back pain as “normal”. But it is not normal and is preventable.
Which parts of the body change the most in adults?
Muscles, tendons, posture patterns, and joint loading adapt quickly. Bones change more slowly, but they do change, especially bone density and joint surfaces.
According to Dr Bagaria, feet, hips, spine, and shoulders are the most vulnerable. "These are the structures that remodel themselves around your daily routine," he says.
For more health updates, follow #HealthWithBS This content is for informational purposes only and is not a substitute for professional medical advice.
 "Small daily habits, big anatomical consequences: What your body is becoming")
