#1 Exercise for Neck Pain

Suffering from tech neck? Wall angels enforce good posture and help ease neck strain

Michelle Crouch,

Updated January 27, 2026

AARP

Reviewed by

Peter Ronai

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Published February 13, 2025

/ Updated January 27, 2026

The key to unlocking strain in your neck lies in exercising your upper back and shoulders.

Eli Meir Kaplan

For many, neck pain is an unfortunate side effect of modern life.

Whether it’s from years of poor posture, stress or too many hours hunched over your smartphone, neck pain can sneak up on you and make everyday activities more difficult. About 15 percent of U.S. adults reported having neck pain over the past three months, according to federal health survey data from 2017, and as many as 70 percent of Americans will experience neck pain that interferes with their daily activities at some point during their lifetime.

A 2024 study published in the journal Pain found that global cases of neck pain were expected to more than double by 2044, driven largely by more sedentary work, increased screen time and the aging population.

#1 Exercise Series

Do these to stay strong as you age

Most neck discomfort these days is caused by degenerative neck disease from poor posture, says Dr. Rojeh Melikian, an orthopedic spine surgeon at Disc Sports & Spine Center in Newport Beach, California.

“It’s tech neck, where people are staring at computers and phones,” Melikian says. “That forward posture tends to wear down the discs.”

An adult head weighs about 10 to 12 pounds in a neutral position, says Dr. Ken Hansraj, a spinal and orthopedic surgeon in New York and author of Watch Your Back: Nine Proven Strategies to Reduce Neck and Back Pain Without Surgery.

But when your head tilts forward, it exerts as much as 60 pounds of pressure on your neck and spine, causing strain, stiffness and degeneration, according to a 2014 research study by Hansraj published in Surgical Technology International.

To keep your neck joints supple, Hansraj recommends frequently bending and tilting your head in all directions. But the real key to unlocking the strain on your neck lies in your upper back and shoulders, he says.

That’s why, if you only have time for one exercise for your neck, Hansraj and Melikian both recommend the wall angel. This multidimensional exercise opens the chest and lengthens the muscles in the neck, shoulders and core, Hansraj describes. Done regularly, it strengthens back muscles, promotes proper spine alignment and can help release compressed vertebral joints in your neck — all of which can help relieve neck strain. (If you have more time, also try 5 Exercises and Stretches for Neck Pain.)

A 2025 study in the Journal of Sport Rehabilitation found that doing wall angel exercises three times a week for just two weeks significantly improved how well people’s shoulder blades and upper back moved — changes that should ease the type of tension that causes neck pain.

How to do a wall angel in 5 steps

Here’s a step-by-step description of how to do a wall angel. Remember to talk to your doctor before beginning any new exercise routine. And if you feel pain during movement, stop and consult a health care provider or physical therapist.

1. Stand with your back to a wall. Walk your feet out so that your heels are 6 inches from the wall.

2. Lean back against the wall. Tuck your pelvis so that your lower back is flat against the wall. Then pull your shoulders and head back to touch the wall.

3. Slowly raise your arms overhead, with the back of your hands skimming the wall, until your hands touch overhead. If your arms don’t go up that far due to tightness, pain or arthritis, just raise them as high as you feel comfortable, Hansraj says.

4. Slowly return your arms to the starting position, making sure the backs of your arms never leave the wall.

5. Repeat 5 to 10 times.

Editor’s note: This article, originally published on Feb. 13, 2025, has been updated with new information and medically reviewed.

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Michelle Crouch is a contributing writer who has covered health and personal finance for some of the nation’s top consumer publications. Her work has appeared in Reader’s Digest, Real Simple, Prevention, The Washington Post and The New York Times.

Peter Ronai is a clinical exercise physiologist and clinical professor of exercise science at Sacred Heart University in Fairfield, Connecticut. He is the associate editor-in-chief of the American College of Sports Medicine’s Health & Fitness Journal and teaches and writes about exercise strategies exercise professionals can use to help clients improve their strength, physical fitness, function and health-related quality of life. He is a fellow of the American College of Sports Medicine and the Clinical Exercise Physiology Association.