After a long day sitting at your desk, or worse, facing your laptop, do you feel your muscles stiffening? Stretch your arms and… What was that noise? It wasn’t your neck or back, was it?

Working at any desk job naturally leads to prolonged sitting, which could pose significant harm to your body, including your neck, back muscle, spine, arms, and wrists. That is why office yoga has been gaining popularity among professionals of all ages.

In this article, we will share with you our favorite office yoga moves you can practice without taking out the hassle of setting up the yoga mat or even leaving your seat.

Office Yoga 1: Seated Cresent Moon

You may be surprised to find out how many yoga poses you can fit into the space of your chair and around your desk. Many prefer chair yoga for office workers over regular yoga poses because of its convenience. Chair poses are also less challenging and are thus more suitable for those less flexible or less familiar with yoga.

Seated Cresent Moon is a great beginner’s pose to stretch the side of your body. Follow the next steps to practice this pose:

1. Put your hands together and stretch your arms above your head.
2. Breathe in, then slowly bend to the right. Feel a straight line of energy going up from your seat to your fingertip, stretching the left side of your body.
3. Breathe out, use the power of your core to pull yourself back to sitting up straight.
4. Next, breathe in, then slowly bend to the left.
5. Finally, breathe out, and return to center.
6. Repeat steps 2-5 a few times.

Office Yoga 2: Desk Upward Dog

If you are somewhat familiar with yoga, you’ve heard of the “Downward Dog” pose. The Desk Upward Dog is a less challenging alternative that’s often incorporated in a corporate yoga sequence.

Desk Upward Dog helps you loosen your waist and lower spine, but it also relaxes your entire back and shoulder joints. In short, this is a comprehensive post that requires nothing but a desk. To practice the Desk Upward Dog, follow the steps below:

1. Stand straight and open your arms shoulder-length apart. Rest your hands on the desk edge.
2. Step your feet back to form a diagonal line with your body to the floor.
3. Breathe in and bend backward, shifting your center toward your hands while opening up your throat and chest.
4. Breathe out and bend forward until your back and arms form a straight line and are parallel to the desk.
5. Repeat steps 3 and 4 a few times.

Office Yoga 3: Finger and Wrist Twist

Also known as wrist circles, finger and wrist twist is one of the most straightforward office yoga moves. All you need to do is put your fingers over your thumbs on each side, then twist your wrists in circular motions. This move requires no preparation. You can do a few circles while waiting for coffee or staring at the slow-moving copier.

The finger and wrist twist allows you to move your wrist joints and slightly stretch your forearm muscles. Pay attention if you feel any pain during this process. That could mean that you are developing muscle and joint diseases due to excessive typing and desk works.

Office Yoga 4: Chair Forward Bend

Chair Forward Bend is a great pose if you need deeper stretching for your back. Similar to the famous Standing Downward Fold pose, you bend your body close to 180 degrees in this pose to extend every muscle on your back, arms, and shoulders.

Photo Credit: Verywellfit.com

To practice the Chaird Foward Bend pose, follow these steps:

1. Sit straight in your chair and drop your hands on the sides of your body.
2. Breathe in and stretch your body long.
3. Breathe out and fold your body down from your waist until your hands touch the ground.
4. Let your head point down naturally. If you can, place both palms on the floor with fingers pointing inward.
5. Breathe in and lift your body. Return to sitting pose.
6. Breathe out.

Since this is a more advanced pose, make sure you are not pushing yourself too hard. If you feel light-headed at any point, stop and switch to a more comfortable pose. If you can’t place your palm on the floor, don’t worry about it. You will become more flexible as you practice.

Office Yoga 5: Chair Savasana

Like the Child Pose and Corpse Pose we use in regular yoga practices, Chair Savasana is your office yoga alternative for final relaxation. The Chair Savasana provides a restoration session where your body absorbs the benefits from the yoga practice you’ve just completed. You can also turn this into a short meditation practice and prepare your mind for more work coming up.

Practice These Office Yoga Moves in Our Yoga Room

If a 5-minute office yoga is not enough, how about practicing your new sequence in our private yoga room?

Our yoga room is temperature-controlled, well-equipped, and designed to inspire mindfulness. Nobody will disturb your peace, and you can easily go beyond basic office yoga moves and have a full yoga session by booking the room in advance.