Exercises at Your Workstation: Shoulders

Tight shoulders? Aching back? A few easy moves can help your shoulders and back feel better. Take a few minutes during your day to do these exercises, right at your desk. They'll loosen up your muscles, keep you more alert, and make a big difference in how you work and feel.

Breathe deeply as you do your exercises. Breathe in through your nose. Breathe out through your mouth.

For your shoulders

Warm-up

• Drop your head gently to your chest. While breathing in, slowly roll your head up to your left shoulder. While breathing out, slowly roll your head back to center. Repeat to the right.

• Repeat 3 times on each side.

Shoulder raise

• Slowly raise your shoulders toward your ears. Hold for a few seconds.

• Rotate shoulders back and down.

• Repeat 3 times.

Shoulder blade squeeze

• Put your hands up, forearms raised.

• Push your arms back, squeezing your shoulder blades. Hold for a few seconds, then relax.

• Repeat 3 times.

Points to remember

• Move through these slowly. Do not rush or do them at a fast pace.

• None of these exercises should cause pain. So do not push yourself into a painful range. And do not do any exercise that causes pain.

• Don't exercise when you're sick or feeling very fatigued.

If you feel pain while doing these stretching exercises, stop and contact your healthcare provider.