Your shoulders live somewhere near your ears, your jaw aches by the end of the day, and your hips feel stiff however much you sit or stand. Tight spots like these are very common, and they are often more about habit and stress than about any one muscle being "wrong".
In short: slow, mindful movements that gently contract and then release a tense area can help you sense and let go of habitual tension, rather than forcing a stretch. Go slowly, and stay within comfort.
Why tension settles in certain places
Stress can show up as muscle tension, and the NHS lists muscle pain among the physical signs of stress. Shoulders, neck, jaw and hips are common places for it to gather. Long hours at a desk or screen, a stressed posture, clenching and holding the breath all add up.
Often we do not notice we are tense until we pause and check. One idea behind progressive muscle relaxation, described by Johns Hopkins, is to feel the presence and absence of tension, so you can spot lingering tension and do something about it. Somatic exercises use a similar idea through slow, aware movement. See our overview of somatic exercises if you are new to this.
Is this the same as stretching?
Not quite. Stretching lengthens a muscle. Somatic release uses slow, aware contraction and letting go, which many people find helps them notice and ease tension. Harvard Health makes the point that somatic exercises are not about stretching or muscle burn.
The slow squeeze-and-release used in these exercises is sometimes called pandiculation, and it is central to a method called Hanna Somatic Education. It is worth being honest about the evidence. A retrospective study of 103 people with neck or low back pain reported reduced pain after a few sessions, but it had no control group, so it cannot show the method itself was responsible, and the authors call for a randomised trial. Claims that the technique "resets" muscle tone are, so far, speculation. Think of these exercises as a gentle way to build awareness, not a proven fix.
If you have persistent or severe pain, numbness, or pain after an injury, please see a doctor first. Stop any movement that hurts.
Shoulders and neck
- Sit or stand with your arms by your sides.
- On an inhale, gently lift your shoulders towards your ears, about halfway. Hold for a few seconds.
- On an exhale, slowly let them lower, taking even longer than you took to lift. Notice them settling a little lower than before.
- Repeat three to five times, then slowly turn your head side to side within a comfortable range.
Two minutes.
Jaw and face
- Gently clench your teeth and scrunch your face for two or three seconds, then let go completely.
- Let your teeth part and your tongue rest. Notice any softening in your jaw hinge.
- Open your mouth slowly as if for a silent yawn, then let it close.
- Repeat three or four times, keeping everything gentle.
Two minutes. If you have jaw pain or a jaw condition, check with a health professional first.
Hips and lower back
- Lie on your back with your knees bent and feet flat.
- Gently press your feet into the floor and tighten your buttocks lightly for a few seconds, without lifting.
- Slowly release and let your legs soften. Notice your hips settling into the floor.
- Let both knees fall slowly to one side, then the other, as far as is comfortable.
Two minutes. Skip any movement that causes pain, and take extra care if you have had hip or back surgery or injury.
You may have heard that emotions or trauma are "stored" in the hips. That is popular wellness language, not an established fact. What we can say is that stress often makes us hold tension, and that gentle movement can help us notice and release some of it. Our article on trauma and the body looks at what is known.
Belly and breath
Tension in the belly and a held breath often go together. Place a hand on your belly and breathe slowly. Let your belly soften on the inhale instead of pulling it in, and breathe out for a little longer than you breathe in. You can combine this with any of the exercises above. See also releasing muscle tension for related ideas.
A full-body tension release routine
Put it together in about ten minutes:
- Arrive and breathe: 1 minute
- Shoulders and neck: 2 minutes
- Jaw and face: 2 minutes
- Hips and lower back: 2 minutes
- Belly and breath: 1 minute
- Rest and notice: 2 minutes
What you might notice: a softer jaw, shoulders that sit a little lower, warmth, or a deeper breath. You may also notice nothing at first. How to stop: pause at any point, open your eyes, feel your feet or back against the floor and breathe normally.
Little and often works well: a couple of minutes a day, or a break every hour at a desk. If you find the routine helps, you might enjoy somatic shaking as a next step, and for a stress-focused set of movements see somatic exercises for stress.
