Neck side line
Upper trap release
Movement guide
Upper trap release
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Existing guide · editorial review pending. Clinical review is pending.
Sources and review status
Sources support the educational description; they do not establish that this exercise is suitable for you.
- Lundberg 1999 · stress and muscle tone
No variation is labeled clinically validated.
Anchor one shoulder down, tilt the head away, and let the side of the neck lengthen. This is where mental load lives: the muscle that shrugs is the one that switches on first under stress and off last.
Make it easier or harder
Choose a version that fits your control and comfort.
Easier option
3D demoSide neck stretchBeginner · No equipmentSuggested next step, beginner grade.
Harder option
Keep a comfortable range and follow any technique and timing given in the guide. A deeper stretch or more complex pose is optional, not a required next step. Ingram 2025 review of stretching and range of motion
How to do it
- 01Sit tall and let one arm hang, or tuck that hand under your thigh to keep the shoulder down.
- 02Tilt your head away from that shoulder, ear toward the opposite shoulder.
- 03Rest the free hand lightly over your head, adding no more than its own weight.
- 04Breathe slowly for thirty seconds, release, then repeat on the other side; two rounds each.
Mistakes that waste your reps
- Pulling with the hand; gravity plus the hand's weight is the entire dose.
- Letting the anchored shoulder ride up, which cancels the stretch.
- Rotating the head instead of tilting it.
Where this comes from
Discomfort that eases as you move is normal; pain that sharpens is a stop sign. If this area is injured or persistently painful, a clinician outranks this page.
Written by Kyle Jenkin · updated August 31, 2026 · how we grade evidence
Pairs well with
What it works
Muscles
Works the neck. Individual muscles are not yet classified.
Equipment
None: body weight and floor space.
Level
Beginner. See the easier and harder options above.
Workouts that use it
- Full-body stretch routine · 15 min
- Neck and shoulder stretches · 10 min
- Neck and shoulder strength routine · 18 min
- Neck and shoulder knots routine: press, stretch, strengthen · 15 min
- Wheelchair workout: seated cardio and shoulder-protecting strength · 30 min
- Stress relief workout: a 12-minute move, loosen and breathe reset · 12 min
- Massage ball routine: feet, forearms and chest · 15 min
- Yoga for neck pain: a 20-minute gentle sequence · 20 min
Show all 16 workoutsShow fewer workouts
- Traps workout: shrugs, rows, raises and carries · 30 min
- Yoga for TMJ and jaw tension: a 20-minute jaw, neck and breath class · 20 min
- Yoga for stress relief: a 20-minute class to breathe, loosen, move and slow down · 20 min
- Yoga for tinnitus: a 20-minute calming class with the sound on · 20 min
- Yoga to cool down anger: a 12-minute slow-down practice · 12 min
- Neck strength workout: holds, head lifts, shrugs and carries · 20 min
- Shoulder Pilates: a 25-minute class for the shoulder blades, the rotator cuff, weight on your hands and reach overhead · 25 min
- Yoga for your shoulders: a 25-minute class for the shoulder blades, the rotator cuff, weight on your hands in steps and reach overhead · 25 min
Pain guides that use it
Part of a staged plan, with when to get help first.
- Stiff neck or wry neck: how to ease it, and how long it lasts
- Tech neck: what really helps desk and phone neck pain
- Headaches from the neck (cervicogenic headache): exercises, and when to get checked
- Thoracic outlet syndrome: exercises, the warning signs, and when surgery helps
- Jaw pain and TMJ disorder: self-care, jaw exercises and what the evidence shows
- Neck pain from sleeping: waking with a sore neck, pillows, positions and exercises
- Neck pain when turning your head: a stiff neck, a trapped nerve, whiplash, driving and what helps
- Pain on the side of the neck: muscles and joints, a pinched nerve, glands, the throat and thyroid
Show all 17 pain guidesShow fewer pain guides
- Neck and shoulder pain: the neck, a trapped nerve or the shoulder, desk and sleep, and the heart
- Neck pain in pregnancy: posture, sleep and feeding positions, headaches, and the signs to check
- Neck pain when doing shrugs: the upper traps, your head, rolling, heavy loads, headaches and swaps
- Neck pain when doing rows: shrugging, the upper traps, your head, upright and inverted rows, swaps
- Neck pain when driving: the headrest, looking over your shoulder, long journeys and after a crash
- Neck pain after flying: sleeping upright, neck pillows, screens, lifting bags and what helps
- Shoulder pain from carrying: bags, backpacks, a baby or toddler, the rotator cuff and what helps
- Neck pain after a massage: the face cradle, deep pressure, headaches and the signs to act on
- Neck pain after a chiropractor: soreness after an adjustment, headaches, rare harms and what helps
Guides that use it
- Pilates for neck pain guide
- Pilates for TMJ and jaw pain guide
- Pilates for cervical spondylosis guide
- Pilates for nurses guide
- Pilates for your shoulders guide
- Pilates for tinnitus guide
- Pilates for neck and shoulders guide
- Chair yoga guide
Show all 51 guidesShow fewer guides
- Yoga for neck pain guide
- Yoga for headaches and migraine guide
- Face yoga guide
- Desk yoga guide
- Yoga for TMJ guide
- Yoga for stress relief guide
- Yoga for tinnitus guide
- Yoga for anger guide
- Yoga for addiction recovery guide
- Yoga for sinus problems guide
- Yoga for degenerative disc disease guide
- Yoga for cervical spondylosis guide
- Yoga for nurses guide
- Yoga for your shoulders guide
- Yoga for the neck and shoulders guide
- Fascia exercises guide
- Trigger points guide
- Cupping guide
- Gua sha guide
- Massage balls guide
- Active release technique guide
- Myofascial pain syndrome guide
- Craniosacral therapy guide
- Jaw and TMJ guide
- Neck and shoulders guide
- Face guide
- Headaches guide
- Strain-counterstrain guide
- Exercise for migraine
- Exercise for wheelchair users
- Exercise after an amputation
- Exercise for stress relief
- Exercise with blood cancer
- Exercise after a spinal cord injury
- Exercise while breastfeeding
- Sitting posture guide
- Uneven shoulders guide
- Military neck guide
- Shrugs guide
- Bigger traps guide
- Thicker neck guide
- Strengthen your neck guide
- Neck mobility guide
Browse more
Questions people ask
What muscles does the Upper trap release work?
It works the neck.
What equipment do I need for the Upper trap release?
No equipment: your body weight and a little floor space.
Is the Upper trap release good for beginners?
It is graded beginner, so it suits most people starting out.
What is an easier alternative to the Upper trap release?
Try the Side neck stretch. It is the suggested step down from this move.
One move is a start. A thread is better.
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