Who this set is for
- You spend most of the working day at a screen
- Neck and shoulder tension builds through the afternoon
- Headaches sometimes start at the base of your skull
- You have been told your posture is the problem and want something more useful than sitting up straight
The set, in order
The sequence matters: it moves from switching on to loading. Each exercise links to its full guide, with the technique, mistakes and progressions.
- 1
Chin Tuck
10 repetitions, 5 second holdsA small backward glide of the head that trains the deep neck flexors, the muscles that hold your head over your shoulders rather than in front of them.
This is the switch-on. Do it first, gently, before anything else.
- 2
Scapular Squeeze
10 repetitions, 5 second holdsDrawing the shoulder blades down and together to wake the mid back muscles that should be sharing the load of desk posture. The direction is the detail: down and together, never up.
- 3
Seated Thoracic Rotation
8 rotations each wayA seated rotation that restores movement to the mid back so the neck no longer has to do its turning for it. The chair is part of the exercise: it anchors your hips so the rotation comes from the right place.
The mid back is where desk stiffness actually lives. Turn as far as is comfortable, breathe out at the end of each turn.
- 4
Wall Slide
8 slow repetitionsAn overhead reaching pattern trained against a wall, which carries some of the arm's weight while the shoulder blades learn to move properly. One of the safest ways to rebuild overhead movement.
- 5
Upper Trapezius Stretch
30 seconds each sideA gentle side stretch for the muscle that burns along the top of your shoulders by mid afternoon. Real relief, but temporary unless you also change what made the muscle overwork.
Last, once everything is warm. A gentle lean, not a yank.
Running the set well
- Pair it with something that already happens daily, such as the mid afternoon coffee. Consistency beats intensity here by a wide margin.
- Nothing in this set should hurt. Working muscles can ache mildly; pain that shoots, tingles or lingers is information, not progress.
- If you only have two minutes, do the chin tucks and the rotations.
When to get assessed instead
Get assessed before continuing if any of these movements bring on dizziness, pins and needles into the arms, or a headache during the exercise itself. Those are signals to check, not to push through.