If, like me, you spend a lot of time at your desk, the chances are you’ve felt the effects—tight hips, rounded shoulders and stiffness creeping into your neck and back.
That’s why I’m always looking for new exercises to improve my posture and counteract the downsides of desk life. So when I came across this Instagram post by yoga teacher Abi Mills demonstrating the wall angel exercise, it reminded me how effective this move can be.
I decided to dig deeper and after speaking with two experts, I’m adding wall angels to my weekly mobility routine. Here’s why.
It “resets” the upper body
“Wall angels are a deceptively simple exercise with powerful benefits. Imagine them as a reset button for your upper body posture,” says Dr. Dustin Debroy, manager of chiropractic education and relations at The Joint Chiropractic.
“By standing with your back against a wall and slowly moving your arms like you’re making a snow angel, you’re training your muscles to work together the way they were designed to. This movement helps open up the chest and shoulders, which often become tight from hours of sitting or hunching over devices.
“At the same time, wall angels activate key postural muscles in your upper back and core, teaching your body how to maintain proper shoulder blade positioning while keeping your spine in a neutral posture.”
Dynamic stretching lengthens tight muscles
Posture isn’t just about standing up straight—it’s also about how your body functions when in motion, says Debroy.
“Wall angels help improve posture by building active mobility, which means your body learns to control movement with strength and precision.
“Passive stretching, while helpful, doesn’t fully prepare us for the dynamic demands of daily life. Life is active, so our training should be too.
“Wall angels help lengthen tight muscles in the chest, shoulders, and arms while maintaining a neutral spine and engaging in a deliberate movement pattern.
“They teach your body to hold itself better, without slouching or compensating, because they strengthen the right muscles in the right way.”
It encourages shoulder blade mobility
“Most of us spend hours with our shoulders rounded and our heads forward over devices or driving. Wall angels reverse that pattern by bringing the spine into neutral and encouraging shoulder blade mobility—they counterbalance what sitting steals from us,” says Elyse Familant, yoga teacher and founder of Living in the Light Wellness.
“When you do this movement, it reminds your body what ‘upright’ actually feels like.
“Posture isn’t something you fix once, it’s like any other exercise, something you practice regularly. I recommend doing a few posture resets daily, especially after spending a long time at a desk or in your car.
“Think of them like you think about brushing your teeth—and remember that short, consistent habits make a huge difference over time.”
It may even lift your mood
“Research has shown that slumping affects stress and mood. Regular movement breaks doing stretches like wall angels aren’t just good for the body, they are good for your mindset,” says Familant.
“It’s not the sitting part that is the problem, it’s the not moving. Humans were born to move.
“When we sit for hours, the muscles that keep us upright start to slump, while others get tight.
“Over time, this changes how we walk, breathe and even how we feel emotionally.”
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