Three simple exercises from a posture coach to alleviate back pain and improve poor upper-back posture
Mobility coach Anthony Green, with over 2.7 million followers on Instagram, has shared three bodyweight exercises designed to strengthen and mobilize the upper back. These exercises aim to improve thoracic spine and shoulder mobility while alleviating upper back pain.
The exercises, which do not require any equipment, are intended to be performed for approximately one minute each. The first exercise, the Thoracic Spine Extension, helps improve mobility and reduce stiffness in the upper back by extending the thoracic area.
The second exercise, Band-Assisted Stretching, utilises a resistance band to facilitate increased range of motion and help stretch the muscles around the shoulders and upper back. The third exercise, Scapular Retractions, focuses on strengthening the muscles between the shoulder blades by actively squeezing the scapula together, promoting better posture and upper back strength.
These movements are designed to complement each other, as they both strengthen and mobilize the upper back region effectively. Anthony Green emphasises the importance of performing each exercise for roughly one minute to maintain a balance between mobility and strengthening without overdoing it.
In addition to these exercises, Green demonstrates the Prone Snow Angel, Prone Overhead Reach, and Prone Rotation. The Prone Snow Angel mobilises the shoulders through their full range of motion, while the Prone Overhead Reach creates space around the thoracic spine and through the shoulder joint. The Prone Rotation unilaterally mobilises and activates the thoracic spine.
These three exercises can be used as a standalone circuit to address upper-back soreness, or to mobilise and activate the upper back and shoulders before an upper-body workout. Green suggests performing 2-3 sets of 5-10 reps for each exercise.
Green recently released a video addressing upper back pain and stiffness, highlighting the importance of strengthening the upper back instead of just stretching it. Improvements in shoulder and thoracic spine mobility can enhance posture and reduce back pain.
[1] Green, A. (2021). Mobility WOD: Upper Back Mobility. [Video file]. YouTube. [2] Green, A. (2021). Fixing Upper Back Pain. [Video file]. YouTube.
- Incorporating a combination of yoga poses and fitness-and-exercise routines, such as the Thoracic Spine Extension, Band-Assisted Stretching, Scapular Retractions, Prone Snow Angel, Prone Overhead Reach, and Prone Rotation, can enhance health-and-wellness by improving flexibility in the upper back and shoulders.
- Science suggests that regular workout routines focusing on the upper back, like those shared by Anthony Green, can alleviate upper back pain and stiffness, offering a more holistic approach to fitness-and-exercise and health-and-wellness.
- By becoming more flexible in the upper back through a routine of mobility exercises and upper-body workouts, one may achieve better posture, reduced back pain, and overall wellness in the field of fitness-and-exercise and health-and-wellness.
