Desk stretches
Desk stretches that undo a day of sitting
Twelve quick stretches for the six areas office work punishes most — neck, shoulders, back, wrists, hips, and eyes. Each takes about 30 seconds, and most never leave the chair.
Why desk stretches work
Stiffness at a desk isn’t caused by bad posture so much as by unchanging posture. Muscles held in one position gradually tighten, circulation slows, and by late afternoon your neck, back, and hips feel welded in place. Short stretches repeated through the day interrupt that process at the source — which is why ergonomists recommend a brief movement break every 30–60 minutes over one long session (details in how often you should stretch at work).
Neck stretches
Hours of screen-staring park your head forward and your neck pays the bill.
Neck tilt
Slowly tilt your ear toward your shoulder, keeping the other shoulder relaxed. Hold 20–30 seconds per side.
Chin tuck
Glide your chin straight back (make a dignified double chin), hold 5 seconds, release. Repeat 5 times.
Shoulders stretches
Keyboards pull your shoulders up and forward; these pull them back where they belong.
Shoulder rolls
Roll both shoulders up, back, and down in slow circles — 10 backward, 10 forward.
Chest opener
Clasp hands behind your back, straighten your arms, and lift slightly while opening the chest. Hold 20–30 seconds.
Back stretches
Your spine wants rotation and extension — sitting gives it neither.
Seated twist
Sit tall, place one hand on the opposite knee, and rotate gently through your mid-back. Hold 20 seconds per side.
Seated cat-cow
Hands on knees: arch your back and look up, then round your spine and tuck your chin. 8 slow cycles.
Wrists stretches
Typing all day is a repetitive-strain marathon for your forearms.
Wrist flexor stretch
Arm straight, palm up; gently pull fingers down and back with the other hand. Hold 20 seconds per side.
Fist openers
Make a fist, then spread your fingers wide. Repeat 10 times per hand.
Hips stretches
Chairs keep your hips at 90° for hours; they’d like a word.
Seated figure-4
Cross one ankle over the opposite knee, sit tall, and hinge forward gently. Hold 20–30 seconds per side.
Standing hip flexor stretch
Step one foot back into a mini-lunge, tuck your pelvis, and press the back hip forward. Hold 20–30 seconds per side.
Eyes stretches
Focus locked at 60 cm for eight hours is a stretch problem too.
Near-far focus
Focus on your thumb at arm’s length, then on something across the room. Alternate for 20–30 seconds.
20-20-20 break
Every 20 minutes, look at something 20 feet (6 m) away for 20 seconds.
Knowing the stretches is 10% of it
Every stretch on this page is simple. The hard part is doing them at 3 pm on a Wednesday when your calendar is on fire. That’s the gap Stiff closes: it sends a stretch reminder at the rhythm you choose, guides the exact move with an illustration and timer, and turns consistency into streaks, XP, and a rising Unstiff Score. Want a ready-made sequence instead? Run the 5-minute desk stretch routine.
Stiff shares general wellness information, not medical advice. If you have an injury, chronic pain, or a medical condition, check with a healthcare professional before starting a stretching routine, and stop any stretch that causes pain.
Frequently asked questions
What stretches can I do at my desk without standing up?
Plenty: neck tilts and rotations, chin tucks, shoulder rolls, seated spinal twists, seated figure-4 hip stretches, wrist flexor and extensor stretches, and near-far eye focus can all be done from your chair. Stiff guides each of these with illustrations and a 30-second timer.
How long should desk stretches take?
About 30–60 seconds per stretch is enough to release tension, and a full micro-break of one to two minutes every 30–60 minutes beats one long session. Stiff’s routines are built around 20–30 second exercises so a break never derails your work.
Are desk stretches enough exercise?
No — and that’s fine. Desk stretches aren’t a workout; they interrupt prolonged static posture, keep blood moving, and reduce accumulated stiffness. Think of them as maintenance between real training sessions, not a replacement for them.
What are the best stretches for sitting at a computer all day?
Prioritise the areas that hold the most tension from typing posture: neck side tilts and chin tucks, chest openers to counteract rounded shoulders, seated twists for the mid-back, hip flexor and figure-4 stretches for the hips, wrist stretches for typing strain, and 20-20-20 breaks for your eyes.
Will my coworkers notice me stretching at my desk?
Most desk stretches are subtle — a neck tilt or wrist stretch reads as ‘thinking’, not ‘gym’. And in teams that use Stiff’s group leaderboard, visible stretching tends to be a flex, not an embarrassment.
Is there an app that guides you through desk stretches?
Yes. Stiff (iOS and Android) sends stretch reminders during your work hours and guides each stretch with an illustration and timer, covering neck, shoulders, back, wrists, hips, and eyes — then tracks your streaks and progress so the habit sticks.
Learn more
5-minute desk stretch routine
The twelve moves above, sequenced into one tidy routine.
Read more →Neck & shoulder pain from desk work
Why it happens and the six stretches that help most.
Read more →Wrist stretches for typing
Protect your wrists and forearms from a career of keyboards.
Read more →Stretch reminder app
The app that remembers these stretches so you don’t have to.
Read more →Download Stiff
Get these stretches delivered to your desk
Stiff reminds you at the right moments and walks you through every move — 30 seconds at a time.
Free to download on iPhone and Android.