In our hectic lives, we are pretty much stressed every day. Almost every part of our body suffers the tension until we release it. A long sitting job, your posture, or some exercises can cause your muscles to misalign, which can lead to stress, pain and stiffness. Other than a massage, there are numerous ways in which can loosen your tight shoulders. Given below are 7 stretches that can help you combat the problem of tight shoulders and get rid of shoulder pain in no time.

Also read: The Shoulder Injuries You Can’t Ignore
Shoulder Rolls
- Keep your back straight while sitting or standing
- Now, roll your shoulders up, then back, and down
- Repeat this movement 10 times
- Reverse and repeat
- Now, roll forward for about 10 minutes
Shoulder Raises
- Relax your shoulders and neck
- Gently lift both shoulders towards your ears
- Then, slowly bring back them to the starting position
- Repeat this 10 times
Cross Arm Stretch

Also read: Troubled due to back and shoulder stiffness? These yoga moves are better than a massage
- Bring your left arm up at about your chest height
- Grab your left arm by your right hand
- Stretch out to your shoulder and hold for 30 seconds
- Repeat on the opposite side
- You can do this even when you are not working out
Cat-cow Pose
- Align your wrists directly under your shoulders and your knees underneath your hips
- Centre your head in a neutral position
- Drop your belly towards the floor while inhaling, lift your chin and chest and look up at the ceiling
- As you exhale, roll your spine as you tuck your chin into your chest
- Inhale and come back to the cow pose, and exhale and return to the cat pose
- Repeat this 10-20 times, paying attention to your shoulders
Chin Retraction
- This can be while standing and sitting
- Extend your chin as far as you can without putting too much stress on it
- Then slowly pull it back slightly in toward your throat
- Try to keep your chin straight while doing this stretch
- Repeat at least 10 times
Wide-legged Forward Bend (Prasarita Padottanasana)

- Stand in a mountain pose (Tadasana)
- Keep your legs 3-4 feet apart
- Rest your hand on your hips in a way that your inner feet are parallel to each other
- Lift your inner arches by drawing upon the inner ankles and press the outer edges of your feet into the floor
- As you inhale, lift your chest, making the front torso forward the hip joints
- As your hip reaches the floor, press your fingertips onto the floor directly under your shoulders
- Move your spine evenly into the back torso so that your back is slightly concave from the tailbone to the base of the skull
- Now, bring your head up, keeping the back of the neck long and direct your gaze upward
Thread the Needle
- Start on all fours with your legs underneath your hips and your hands underneath your shoulders
- Put (‘thread’) your left arm through the space between the right arm and right leg
- Rest your body on your right shoulder as you turn your head to the left
- Hold this for about 30 seconds
- Now release and come back to the original position
- Repeat again on the opposite side
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