You may have upper back pain may be from an old injury, a bad night’s sleep or bad posture. You may need to see a doctor to cure your upper back pain if it’s serious, but there are some simple home remedies. Below are some upper back stretches and upper back massage techniques to prevent and alleviate your upper back pain.

Quick introduction to my ‘Prevent, Cure and Adapt’ series:

Many ‘older’ people reminisce about their morning jogs or being on playing tennis on weekends ‘when they were young’. When I ask them why they don’t continue, they’re usually respond with saying,  “I can’t, I’m getting old. Everything hurts.”

But even if you might be experiencing some difficulty in going the same exercise you have been doing, I still don’t think that that should be the reason for not getting your daily dose of exercise. Even if you can’t play tennis anymore, there must be something you can do instead of just letting yourself be less active.

So, I’ve created a mini series with some tips on how to alleviate and deal with pain for bad backs, knees, neck and ankles. Enjoy!

What to avoid with upper back pain:

#1 Situps and Toe touches:

Especially if you have poor core strength, sit-ups may make your upper back pain even worse because you unconsciously use your shoulders to propel yourself up. Doing baby crunches, with your arms lightly touching the back of your head, may be better if you want to train your core.

#2 Upper body strengthening exercises:

These include push-ups, overhead presses, bench presses and tricep extensions to name a few.

#3 Bad Posture:

Hunched shoulders and a rounded back will stiffen yours back, causing it to ache. To prevent upper back pain, make a conscious effort to sit upright with a tall spine. If this is hard to maintain, try propping a pillow on your seat, or making sure your entire back is resting on the back of the chair. Also, avoid sitting on stools; it has no support for your back and therefore makes it easier to slouch.

How to relieve upper back pain:

#1 Upper Back Stretches:

Stretching is a great way to relieve and prevent back pain, as well as keep your muscles elongated, and your blood circulation flowing. Here are some simple upper back stretches you can do at work and at home:

Eagle Arms: place your right hand on the bottom and wrap it around your left arm. Draw your elbows away from your body. Bring your arms up as you inhale and down as you exhale.

Overhead Stretch: bring your arm over your shoulder with your elbow pointing towards the ceiling; use your other hand to press your elbow towards your head. Out of all the upper back stretches, this stretch is the easiest to practice to relieve upper back pain at work or anywhere.

Child’s pose: bring your knees wide on your mat, toes together and hips to your heels. Stretch your arms in front of you and place your forehead on the mat.

Puppy pose (heart melting posture): from child’s pose, bring your chest forward so your head is in line with your hands. Rest your forehead on the mat and continue to sink your heart forward.

Embryo pose: take a seat with your legs tucked underneath you. bend forward until your head comfortably touches the ground. Rest your hands on your side.

Rabbit pose: From embryo pose, tuck your toes in and bring your hands to your heels. Slowly round your back and feel your upper back stretching. Only round your back until you feel a decent stretch.

#2 Upper Back Massage:

If you can afford to, you might like to go for a professional upper back massage to cure any serious upper back pain. However, a cheaper and more practical way is to massage yourself. Here are some simple upper back massage techniques to try:

• Use a tennis ball, a yoga block or even in bed with a pillow to massage yourself. If you’re using the tennis ball, lie flat with the tennis ball pressing against your back and start slowly moving around. It’s very relaxing, trust me.
• If you’re using a yoga block, place the block vertically, with the edges just below your shoulder blades. It should be centred so the middle of the block is touching your spine. Rest here for 10 minutes or so for full effect. You could do the same with a pillow. Just note that it probably won’t be much of a ‘massage’.
• Focus on the areas with more severe upper back pain by keeping the tennis ball or yoga block at one area for a few minutes. Relax all your muscles and breathe deeply.

Recommended Exercises for upper back pain:

To prevent your upper back pain from getting worse, don’t do any upper body exercises, especially with weights, while your back is recovering from injury or is extremely stiff. Instead, focus on stretching your back to let it relax and fully recover first. Don’t attempt these exercises until you cure your upper back pain.

You can do some lower body exercises, like running and lower-body strength training in the meantime. Maybe you’d also like to do some yoga. Try this class!

Other posts in this series:

Get more tips and exercises to prevent and cure:

• Lower back pain
• Neck pain
• Ankle pain
• Knee pain

Have any suggestions? Let me know in the comments below!