A 5-minute morning mobility routine for desk workers

You don't need a yoga mat, a foam roller, or a gym membership. You need five minutes and a wall. This is the routine we give desk workers who tell us they "don't have time" for the stretches we prescribe in the clinic.

1. Standing cat-cow (60 seconds). Hands on hips, alternately arch and round your spine, letting the movement travel from your tailbone to your neck. This wakes up every segment of the spine before you sit down for the day.

2. Wall angels (60 seconds). Back flat against a wall, arms in goalpost, slide arms overhead and back down. Ten slow reps. Opens the thoracic spine and mid-back.

3. Standing figure-4 (30 seconds each side). Cross one ankle over the opposite knee, sit back into a mini squat. Opens the hips and glutes so you can actually sit through a meeting without shifting every 90 seconds.

4. Doorway chest stretch (30 seconds each side). Forearm on the frame at 90 degrees, step forward. Undoes the shoulder rounding that starts the second you touch a keyboard.

5. Chin tucks with head rotation (60 seconds). Tuck the chin, hold, slowly rotate the head left and right. Wakes up the deep neck flexors so your posture doesn't collapse by 10 a.m.

That's it. Five minutes, no floor work, coffee in hand if you need it. Do it every morning for two weeks and the difference in how you feel by 3 p.m. is dramatic. If you're already dealing with pain that a mobility routine won't fix, book an evaluation and we'll build you a plan.