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POSTUREGUY MIKE
Exercisesupper backThoracic Extension (Foam Roller)
beginnerFoam rollerFloor

Thoracic Extension (Foam Roller)

The most direct way to mobilize a stiff mid-back. By positioning a foam roller across the thoracic spine and allowing gravity to extend over it, you restore the natural curvature that sitting all day collapses — one vertebral segment at a time.

Thoracic Extension (Foam Roller)
Thoracic Extension (Foam Roller)
Duration
2 min
Hold
30s
Sets
1

How to do it

  1. 1

    Place a foam roller perpendicular to your spine at mid-back level, approximately at the shoulder blades.

  2. 2

    Support your head with your hands laced behind your neck.

  3. 3

    Let your back drape over the roller, opening the chest toward the ceiling.

  4. 4

    Hold for 20 to 30 seconds, breathing slowly into the stretch.

  5. 5

    Move the roller up one vertebral segment and repeat, working from mid-back to upper back only, not the lower back or neck.

Benefits

  • Reverses thoracic kyphosis segment by segment
  • Opens the chest and anterior shoulders through passive extension
  • Provides immediate relief from upper back tightness and stiffness

Common mistakes

  • Rolling onto the lower back or neck, stay between the shoulder blades and mid-thoracic only
  • Cranking the head forward, which removes the cervical extension benefit
  • Not breathing through the stretch, tension prevents the extension effect