Throughout my years of teaching yoga in corporate settings, I’ve heard many people say that they just don’t have time for yoga on work days. It’s understandable. Squeezing in a practice usually becomes the lowest priority in a day crammed full of emails, meetings, and endless to-dos. Still, I’ve found that after I guide groups through a less than 10-minute yoga sequence at their desks, they’re often surprised by how simple, practical, and stress-relieving it can be. The shift is almost immediate—slouched shoulders lift, breathing deepens, and focus sharpens.

After listening to more and more desk workers, I’ve learned that an even bigger obstacle to practicing desk yoga isn’t related to time at all, but how comfortable people feel doing it. Big, obvious movements can sometimes draw attention and make people self-conscious in a professional environment. That’s why I started teaching subtle desk stretches, or movements that can be done discreetly yet offer powerful relief from long hours of sitting—regardless of whether you’re surrounded by coworkers or at home in your sweatpants.

10-Minute Desk Yoga You’ll Actually Want to Practice During Work

This desk-friendly sequence is quick, doesn’t require a mat, and targets the hips, lower back, shoulders, chest, and wrists. In other words, all the muscles that are most affected by hours of sitting. The benefits include not only feeling less pain and stiffness in your body, but promoting circulation, helping improve posture, and gaining mental clarity for a more sustainable work day.

Tip: Throughout the practice (and your workday) keep your feet flat on the floor instead of crossing them or letting them dangle from a chair to help prevent strain in your lower back.

1. Neck Rolls

Ever feel a heaviness in your neck and shoulders, likely the result of craning your head forward as you stare at a screen? This stretch helps soothe that discomfort.

How to: Sit tall and lower your chin toward your chest. Slowly drift your head toward the right and pause. Then drift your head to the left and pause, as if you’re tracing a half–circle. Repeat for a few rounds.

2. Seated Cat-Cow 

These movements help counteract periods of sitting in the same position.

How to: Sit tall. Grasp the armrests of your chair or rest your palms on your thighs. Inhale and arch your back, draw your shoulders away from your ears, and lift your gaze in Cow Pose. Exhale and round your spine, lower your chin toward your chest, and draw your navel toward your spine in Cat Pose. Repeat for a few rounds.

3. Wrist and Finger Stretches

For anyone who types and clicks all day, this simple but potent action can bring big relief to tension in your forearm muscles and fingers.

How to: Draw your elbows toward your sides with your hands reaching forward as you would in Chaturanga. With your palms facing the floor, spread your fingers wide apart. Pause for a breath. Then ball your hands into fists and gently squeeze. Repeat for a few rounds.

4. Chest Opener with Chair Support 

This movement helps reverse the familiar rounding from endlessly hunching over a keyboard by stretching the chest (pectoral) muscles.

How to: Sit tall. Reach your hands behind you and grasp either side of the backrest of the chair. Draw your shoulders away from your ears and reach your chest forward, arching your back as you start to straighten your arms (they don’t need to fully straighten). Breathe here, then release.

5. Side Bend

Stretching your side body (obliques) helps ensure you don’t experience aches and pains when you lean over to plug in your laptop.

How to: Rest your right arm on the armrest or grip the edge of the seat with your right hand. Lift your left hand toward the ceiling, then slowly draw it overhead and reach toward the right side. Pause here for a few breaths, then release. Repeat on the opposite side.

6. Seated Spinal Twist 

Practicing twists during the workday can deliver a satisfying spinal stretch and a welcome mental reset from screen work at the same time.

How to: Twist toward the left and grasp the left armrest or your outer left thigh with your right hand. Grasp the back of the chair with your left hand. Gaze over your left shoulder. Pause for a few breaths, then release. Repeat on the opposite side.

7. Ankle Circles 

This small motion brings more circulation to the lower legs and combats stiffness in your calves and ankles.

How to: Lift one foot off the floor and draw circles with your toes to stretch your ankle. Lower your foot to the floor and repeat with the other foot. For a core-strengthening challenge, draw your navel toward your spine, lean back in the chair, and lift both feet at the same time, roll your ankles, then lower down.

8. Standing Forward Fold 

You don’t need a desk for this stretch and it doesn’t require much space. Practice this frequently throughout the day to help ease strain in your lower back.

How to: From standing, hinge forward from your hips and lower your hands to your thighs, the edge of the desk, or the floor in Standing Forward Fold. Bend your knees as much as you need to and release your neck and shoulders, letting your head hang. Pause here for a few breaths, then slowly return to standing.