Get all your news in one place.
100’s of premium titles.
One app.
Start reading
Fit & Well
Fit & Well
Health
Alice Porter

A yoga instructor recommends doing these four standing wall stretches whenever you want to relieve back pain

Woman in sportwear stretching on a plant-filled balcony in morning sunshine.

Back pain is a common part of many people's lives, particularly those of us who work desk jobs and spend a lot of time sitting down.

One of the best ways to relieve a stiff back is by stretching. Yoga instructor Emily Mouu recently shared four stretches that could offer some relief.

These stretches are all done against a wall, which provides some resistance so that you can gently move 'deeper' into a stretch. Make sure you listen to your body and don’t push too far, stopping if you feel any pain.

How to do Emily Mouu's standing wall stretches

A post shared by Emily Mouu

A photo posted by emilymouu on

Mouu uses a combination of static and dynamic stretches, which means that some of the stretches need to be held while others require movement. While Mouu doesn’t specify a timeframe for the moves, it’s a good idea to aim for 30 seconds on the static poses and two to four repetitions of the dynamic stretches.

Research published in the International Journal of Sports and Physiotherapy suggests that this is the sweet spot for stretching. Doing it for this amount of time will allow you to reap the benefits (improved range of motion in your joints and better flexibility) but holding the stretches for any longer won’t provide significant improvements.

The benefits of stretching

When we sit hunched over our desks for long periods, we force our muscles to stay in the same contracted position. This can eventually make them shorter, via a process known as 'adaptive shortening'. Regular stretching can help elongate the muscles again, but it’s a good idea to back up your routine with some strength exercises, too. This will make sure your muscles are resilient and less prone to injury, so try teaming the above routine with some upper-body dumbbell workouts.

If your lower body is also stiff and sore at the end of the day, you might want to try a combination of hip stretches and hip strengthening exercises.

Consult a health professional if you are dealing with consistent day-to-day pain. And if you have an injury, speak to your doctor before trying these stretches.

Sign up to read this article
Read news from 100’s of titles, curated specifically for you.
Already a member? Sign in here
Related Stories
Top stories on inkl right now
One subscription that gives you access to news from hundreds of sites
Already a member? Sign in here
Our Picks
Fourteen days free
Download the app
One app. One membership.
100+ trusted global sources.