Seated Scapular Squeeze

How to do it

1. Sit upright in your chair with your feet flat on the floor and your arms bent at 90 degrees by your sides.
2. Draw your shoulder blades toward each other as firmly as possible, as if trying to hold a pencil between them.
3. Hold the contraction for 5-10 seconds, keeping your chest lifted and your core engaged.
4. Release the squeeze completely and allow your shoulder blades to return to the resting position.
5. Repeat for the desired number of repetitions.

Form cues

• ✓sit tall with chest lifted
• ✓keep arms at 90 degrees
• ✓imagine holding a pencil between shoulder blades
• ✓avoid shrugging your shoulders toward your ears
• ✓breathe steadily throughout the hold

Breathing: Inhale to prepare, exhale firmly as you squeeze, and maintain steady, rhythmic breathing during the hold.

Common mistakes

• ✗shrugging shoulders up, which creates unnecessary neck tension
• ✗arching the lower back, which shifts focus away from the upper back
• ✗holding breath, which increases blood pressure and prevents relaxation

Muscles worked

Primary: rhomboids. Secondary: traps, delts.

Suggested sets & reps

Frequently asked questions

Learn the fundamentals

• Lesson 15Why Exercise Matters Beyond Burning Calories
• Lesson 19Mobility, Stretching, and Corrective Movement
• Lesson 23Stress, Eating Behavior, and Body Health

Related Office Fit moves

• desk close grip push ups
• desk half bent with straight hands raise stretch
• desk incline plank hold
• desk palm of hands stretch
• desk push ups
• desk push ups standard
• desk standing back stretch
• desk standing leg stretch