Back & Shoulder Strength Exercises

Braincatcher

I have the worst "office chair slouch" and it's giving me pain in my upper back and neck. Are there any exercises to build strength in the upper back and shoulders so my posture will improve?

Angela_clulow

What about yoga that's all about posture and strength ????

JJinWI

Lat pull-downs if you have access to a gym. Planks have also improved my posture. Also, take a tennis ball and place it between your back and the chair and roll away. You will be amazed at all of the trigger points you find. I read that if you have trigger points, that it is difficult to develop muscle. Not sure if that is true or not, but the tennis ball has really helped loosen things up and weightlifting feels SO much better.

Capt_Apollo

squats and dead lifts

qballjr13

Dont forget ab work too. A strong core will help you support your whole upper body.

dixiewhiskey

Rows, lat pull-downs, pushups (gotta have a strong chest too!), bench presses, overhead presses, pullups (assisted if needed) flys.

Lifting has been huge for my posture and decreasing backaches.

Dont forget ab work too. A strong core will help you support your whole upper body.

squats and dead lifts

+1

Cherimoose

I have the worst "office chair slouch"

I'm surprised no one said this. The best solution, by far, is to sit up straight 100% of the time. If you do that, your pain will probably vanish automatically, without doing any supplemental exercises. There are many strong people who slouch, because good posture doesn't involve strength - it's an endurance activity, so it requires constant effort & attentiveness. Put a sticky note on your desk to sit up straight!

With that said, i'd follow a normal, full-body strength training program (NROL, Stronglifts, etc), and also do this stretch a few times daily, which is great for posture:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rUrfdsJV2sY

If you're of average height, use a 55 cm ball (22 inches).