Back Stretches For The Upper And Mid Back: Six That Open A Desk-Tight Back

Last updated: 25 October 2026

Back stretches for the upper and mid back: the short answer

The best back stretches for the upper and mid back lengthen the spine, turn it from the middle, and open the chest. Done gently, with a chair for support, they are very likely to help and are certainly worth trying, based on our experience at Flametree. Upper and mid backs like to be lifted and turned. They do not like to be forced.

This article draws on our free ebook, Happy Backs: The Gentle Iyengar Way With A Sore Back, by Chris Lalor. It is about the upper and mid back only. For the lower back, see our list of lower back stretches. In short:

• Sit on your sitting bones. A tucked, slumped sit is where an achy upper back often starts.
• Lengthen first. Half Dog Pose with your hands on a chair stretches the spine long.
• Twist from the upper back. It is the part of the spine built to turn, so the lower back is spared.
• Open the chest. Triangle Pose, with a long spine and the chest turning open, works the upper back.
• Strength matters as well as stretch. A tired upper back needs both.
• Backbends wait. The gentle ones come later.

A quick word on Iyengar yoga. Iyengar yoga is the style developed by Mr BKS Iyengar. He pioneered the use of props such as chairs, belts and blocks. It is the style we teach at Flametree, in Darwin and live online, and a chair is why an upper back can stretch without being forced.

Which back stretches ease the upper and mid back?

These six, in this order: sit tall on your sitting bones, Half Dog Pose with your hands on a chair, a seated twist on a chair, a standing twist with one foot on a chair, Triangle Pose with a long spine, and, later on, a gentle Locust Pose. The first four make space and turn the spine. The last two open the chest and build strength.

A little background helps. The spine has twelve bones in the upper back, and they do most of the turning in a twist. Rachel Krentzman, an American physical therapist (physiotherapist) and yoga therapist, explains that the lower back bends forward and back easily but turns very little. So in a good twist, you lengthen first and turn from the upper back, and never wrench the lower back round.

The spine is a chain. The upper back is built to lift and turn, and the lower back is not.

1. Sit on your sitting bones

Sitting tall on a block lifts the upper back. The belt holds the legs so the chest can lift.

This is not a stretch, but it is where an upper back stretch begins. Most people sit with the lower back rounded and the tailbone tucked under, so the weight lands on the tailbone. Leslie Howard, an American teacher trained in the Iyengar tradition, says “ten times out of ten” the person is sitting on her tail. The tailbone was not built to carry that weight. The sitting bones were. Sit on a folded blanket or a block, lift your chest, and let the weight drop onto your two sitting bones. Your upper back lifts without effort.

2. Half Dog Pose with your hands on a chair

Half Dog Pose with the hands on a chair lengthens the arms and opens the upper back and shoulders.

Stand a leg’s length from a chair, put your hands on the seat, and walk your hips back until your arms and spine make one long line. Keep your legs straight and press your hands down. Let the chest sink a little between the arms, without dumping into the lower back. This stretches the spine long without rounding it. Stay for 10 to 20 seconds, come up, and go again.

3. A seated twist on a chair

A seated twist (Bharadvajasana I). The chair holds the pelvis steady. Lift the chest, then turn.

Sit sideways on a chair, with the chair back at one side. Hold the back of the chair with both hands. Lift your chest first, then turn gently. The chair holds your pelvis still, so the turn comes from the whole spine, and mostly from the upper back. Breathe out as you turn. Stay 20 to 30 seconds, then change sides. This is the stretch for the stiff patch between the shoulder blades. We explain more in Are Twists Bad For Your Back?

4. A standing twist with one foot on a chair

A standing twist with one foot on a chair (Utthita Marichyasana). Stand tall on the straight leg, then turn the chest toward the raised knee.

Stand on one leg, with the other foot on a chair, and use a wall or rope rail for balance. Stand tall on the straight leg, then turn your chest toward the raised knee. The tall standing leg steadies the lower back, so the turn stays up in the middle of the back. Take two or three slow breaths, change sides, and repeat.

5. Triangle Pose with a long spine

Triangle Pose (Utthita Trikonasana) at the wall. Both legs stay straight and the chest turns open.

In 1992, Mr Iyengar taught remedial classes in Australia. A woman named Christina had had upper back pain, a stiff neck and headaches for four years, and a surgeon was proposing a neck fusion. Mr Iyengar saw that her upper back had stopped carrying its share, so her neck and lower back were doing its job as well as their own. He gave her Triangle Pose at a pillar. At home, you can use a wall or a chair. Keep both legs straight, lengthen first, then turn the chest open. The chair or wall brings the floor up to your hand, so the spine stays long. Hold 10 to 20 seconds each side.

6. Locust Pose, later on

A modified Locust Pose (Salabhasana). A gentle backward bend that strengthens the back muscles, once the back has settled.

Once your back has settled and you have the first five in hand, a very gentle backward bend can join in. Locust Pose strengthens the back muscles along the spine. Geeta Iyengar said, “You cannot straight away do backbends. Learn proper standing poses then switch over to the backbends.” At Flametree, backbends wait. A teacher can show you when, and how high.

Why does the upper back need strength as well as stretch?

Because a tired upper back is often a weak one. In a 2008 Danish trial, 48 women with sore necks from desk work did ten weeks of strengthening for the sore shoulder muscles. It cut their worst pain by about 79%. Cycling with relaxed shoulders helped only a little, and only for a short time. So stretch helps, and strength helps more.

In an Iyengar class the arms work hard. They are stretched up, held out in the standing poses, and pressed into a chair or a wall. Geeta Iyengar and her teachers came back to the same points again and again for the desk back. Shoulders back and down. Shoulder blades moving in toward the chest. Chin level, not poking forward. Neck soft, teeth and jaw unclenched. She said: “Open the armpits and you are safeguarding the neck.”

The research on desks fits. In a 2009 Indian trial, 291 professional computer users were offered an hour of yoga a day, five days a week, for 60 days, or nothing new. The yoga group’s aches and pains came less often, hurt less and got in the way less. The others’ aches got worse.

Which stretches should you skip for an upper back?

Skip strong backbends early, long strained holds, and any stretch that cranks the neck. With a sore neck, Headstand waits, and Shoulderstand is only done with a teacher and plenty of blankets. Geeta told one woman with a neck disc problem she was “not going to take Sirsasana” (Headstand), and gave her standing poses instead. Slow and supported always beats fast and strong.

If your ache is deep between the shoulder blades and is the main thing you want to understand, read Mid Back Pain: Why The Middle Of Your Back Aches, And What Helps. For a stiff neck, read Stiff Neck? Why It Keeps Coming Back.

Where can you learn back stretches in Darwin?

Flametree runs a Yoga For Backs class on Wednesdays at 7.15pm at our Woolner studio, in the studio only. Most of our beginner classes suit upper and mid backs too, because every class is adjusted to the people in the room. If you are looking for back stretches in Darwin, you can also join us live online from anywhere in Australia.

If your pain is new or severe, came after a fall, or comes with numbness or weakness, tell your teacher before class. Feel free to check with your professional advisers if you wish, but also give yoga a try.

Frequently asked questions

What are the best stretches for the upper back?

Half Dog Pose with your hands on a chair, a seated twist on a chair, and Triangle Pose with a long spine. They lengthen the spine, turn it from the upper back and open the chest. Hold each 10 to 20 seconds and repeat.

What stretches ease mid back pain?

Twists are the stretch for the mid back. A seated twist on a chair or a standing twist with one foot on a chair turns the spine from the upper and middle back, where it is built to turn. Lift first, then turn, and keep it gentle.

Why does my upper back ache from sitting?

Often because the upper back has stopped carrying its share. When it does, the neck and the lower back do its work as well as their own. Sitting on the tailbone instead of the sitting bones rounds the back for hours. Lifting from the sitting bones helps.

Is it good to stretch the upper back every day?

Short, gentle stretches most days are kinder than one long hard session. Ten to twenty seconds, repeated, is plenty. Pair the stretch with strength, as the upper back needs both.

Can I stretch my upper back at my desk?

Yes. Sit on your sitting bones, lift your chest and take a slow seated twist with your hands on the chair back. Stand up regularly, too. A 2018 review of eight studies found sit-stand desks may lower low back discomfort in office workers, so the best desk is one you can change.

Should I avoid backbends for upper back pain?

Strong ones, yes, at first. Gentle ones such as Locust Pose can join in later, once your back has settled and your teacher agrees. At Flametree, backbends wait.

Are upper back stretches different from lower back stretches?

Yes. The lower back bends easily but turns little. The upper back does most of the turning. So the upper back stretches lengthen, twist and open the chest, while the lower back stretches work the legs and hips. See our lower back stretches.

Where can I learn back stretches in Darwin?

Our Yoga For Backs class runs on Wednesdays at 7.15pm at the Woolner studio. Our beginner classes, in the studio or live online, also suit upper and mid backs. Start with the half price 10 class pass.

Where to next

• New to yoga, or coming back? Start with our half price 10 class pass with 2 classes free, in Darwin or live online.
• Want to see class times first? Look at the beginner timetable.
• Want the whole story on a sore back? Read Yoga For Sore Back: What Helps, Free Ebook, Darwin.

Flametree Yoga Studio, Darwin and live online. This article is general information, not medical advice. Feel free to check with your professional advisers if you wish, but also give yoga a try.

Sources: Chris Lalor, Happy Backs (Flametree, 2026); Rachel Krentzman, Yoga for a Happy Back (Singing Dragon, 2016); Leslie Howard, Pelvic Liberation (2017); a 2009 Indian trial of 291 computer users and a 2008 Danish trial of 48 women with sore necks (both as reported in Happy Backs); a 2018 review of eight sit-stand desk studies; BKS Iyengar, remedial classes, Australia, 1992; Geeta S Iyengar, Sydney 1996. Full references are in the Happy Backs ebook.