5 Moves That Can Counter Years of Screen Time Better Than Yoga After 60

Stiff neck and sore wrists after long hours on your phone? Begin with these five moves.

For many people over 60, screens take up far more of the day than they realize: a tablet at breakfast, a phone checked on and off throughout the day, and then a laptop or television in the evening. When clients add it up, they’re often surprised. The discomfort usually shows up in the neck, shoulders, wrists, and hands, and those areas respond well to a few focused exercises.

I’ve worked as a personal trainer for nearly four decades, and I’ve led TRAINFITNESS, a major UK fitness education company, for close to 30 years. These five movements only take a few minutes, and they can help reverse the effects of years spent staring at screens.

The Most Common Screen-Related Problems

The issue I see most often is a neck that has become stiff and limited in movement. It develops gradually, so people may not notice it until they struggle to check a blind spot while driving or cannot turn their head properly when reversing. It often comes with pain across the tops of the shoulders and the base of the neck, where the head’s weight is carried for hours.

Tension headaches are common too. So are sore thumbs and wrists from holding and scrolling on phones or tablets for long periods. Some people also develop stiff fingers and a weaker grip, which becomes obvious when opening jars or carrying shopping bags.

Another typical pattern is the head drifting forward while the upper back rounds, especially when the eyes are aimed at a screen that sits too low. Many people also remain in the same position for hours without getting up.

Before You Begin

If you have numbness or tingling in your fingers, pain that travels down the arm, weakness in the hand, or dizziness when turning your head, ask a doctor to check it before trying these exercises. Neck movements should always be slow and never forced.

Exercise does not correct eye strain. The advice eye doctors usually give is simple: every 20 minutes or so, look across the room or out of a window for about 20 seconds. If eye problems continue, see an eye specialist.

Why Yoga Alone Is Not Enough

Yoga is not the problem. It can be excellent for flexibility and relaxation, and if you enjoy classes, that matters. The limitation is that a typical session spends very little time on the neck, wrists, hands, and fingers, which are the areas most affected by screen use.

There is also the issue of weight-bearing positions that load the wrists. Downward dog and plank are obvious examples. If your wrists already hurt from typing or using a phone, they may not welcome your full body weight.

Targeted movements go straight to those problem areas. They take only a few minutes and can be done at a desk or kitchen table between screen sessions, which is when they are most useful.

Side Neck Stretch

This helps loosen the muscles along the side of the neck and the top of the shoulders. Those muscles tighten when the head stays forward and the shoulders creep upward during screen use, and they are often part of tension headaches.

How to Do It:

• Sit upright in a chair.
• Hold the side of the seat with your right hand so that shoulder stays down.
• Slowly tip your left ear toward your left shoulder until you feel a stretch along the right side of your neck.
• If you want a little extra stretch, place your left hand lightly on your head without pulling.
• Hold for 20 to 30 seconds while breathing slowly.
• Repeat on the other side.

Avoid These Mistakes:

• Do not raise the shoulder toward the ear. That reduces the stretch. Keep it anchored by the hand on the chair.
• Do not pull with the hand on your head. It should only rest there.

Sets and Reps: Do 2 rounds on each side, holding each stretch for 20 to 30 seconds.

Form Tip: Keep breathing slowly the whole time.

Neck Turns

This exercise restores the neck’s rotation, which often decreases after the head has been held still in front of a screen for long periods. It directly helps with shoulder checks while driving and backing up, and many clients say that is the first improvement they notice.

How to Do It:

• Sit tall with your chin level and shoulders still.
• Slowly turn your head to look over your right shoulder as far as is comfortable.
• Hold for 3 seconds.
• Return to center, then turn to the left.
• If you want a slightly greater range, place your fingertips on your chin and give a very gentle nudge at the end of the turn.

Avoid These Mistakes:

• Do not let your chin drop or tip upward as you turn. Keep it level.
• Do not rotate your shoulders with your head. Only the head should move.

Sets and Reps: Do 8 to 10 turns in each direction, holding each for 3 seconds.

Form Tip: Move slowly and never force it.

Wrist Stretches

These stretches target the forearm muscles that work constantly during typing, scrolling, and gripping a phone. Prayer stretch and reverse prayer can ease aching wrists and forearms, and you may feel the difference immediately if your hands are tired.

How to Do It:

Prayer stretch:

• Press your palms together in front of your chest with the fingers pointing up.
• Slowly lower your hands toward your waist while keeping the palms together.
• Stop when you feel a stretch beneath the forearms and hold for 20 seconds.

Reverse prayer:

• Place the backs of your hands together with the fingers pointing down.
• Gently lift your elbows until you feel a stretch across the top of the forearms.
• Hold for 20 seconds.

Avoid These Mistakes:

• Do not force either stretch into pain. It should feel comfortable, not sharp.
• Do not let the palms separate as the hands lower.

Sets and Reps: Do 2 to 3 rounds of both stretches, holding each for 20 seconds.

Form Tip: If either position causes tingling, stop and ease off.

Rubber Band Finger and Thumb Opens

Long periods of holding a phone keep the fingers and thumb curled and gripping. This exercise strengthens the small muscles that open the hand, balancing out all that gripping and helping stiff, sore fingers and thumbs.

How to Do It:

• Place a rubber band or hair tie around the fingers and thumb of one hand, near the fingertips.
• Slowly spread the fingers and thumb wide against the band.
• Hold for 2 seconds.
• Close the hand slowly.

For a thumb version:

• Place the band around the thumb and index finger.
• Move the thumb away from the hand and then back again.

Avoid These Mistakes:

• Do not snap the fingers open and shut quickly.
• Do not use a band that is too strong. If you cannot open fully against it, choose a lighter one.

Sets and Reps: Do 12 to 15 repetitions on each hand for 2 sets. For the thumb version, do 10 repetitions.

Form Tip: Open slowly, pause, then close slowly.

Wall Push-Up Plus

This strengthens the muscle along the side of the ribs that keeps the shoulder blade flat against the ribcage, along with the chest and arms, which do very little during screen time. Strong shoulder-blade muscles help the shoulders rest comfortably instead of hunching upward.

How to Do It:

• Stand facing a wall with your hands on it at shoulder height and shoulder-width apart.
• Step your feet back so your body forms a straight line.
• Bend your elbows to bring your chest toward the wall.
• Push back until your arms are straight.
• Then add the plus: keep the arms straight and push the wall a little farther away so your upper back rounds slightly and your shoulder blades move apart.
• Hold for 2 seconds, then relax back. That counts as one repetition.

Avoid These Mistakes:

• Do not shrug your shoulders toward your ears during the plus.
• Do not bend your elbows during the plus. Keep the arms straight the whole time.

Sets and Reps: Do 10 to 12 repetitions for 2 sets.

Form Tip: Keep the motion small and let it come from the shoulder blades.

How Often to Do Them

The first four exercises take only a few minutes in total, and they work best when spread throughout the day rather than done just once. A quick round after about an hour of screen time is ideal, or at minimum in the morning and evening. Daily practice is the goal.

The wall push-up plus is different because it is a strengthening exercise. Doing it three times a week works well, and you can progress by adding repetitions over time. Once 12 reps feels easy, move to a lower surface such as a kitchen counter to increase the challenge.

Habits matter just as much as the exercises:

• Raise the screen to eye level.
• Hold your phone higher.
• Switch hands while scrolling.
• Use a stand for your tablet.
• Look away from the screen every 20 minutes or so.
• Stand up from the chair every 30 to 45 minutes.

Keep Yoga in the Mix

Keep doing yoga if you enjoy it, because it can work well alongside these exercises. If your wrists are sore, use your fists or forearms instead of flat hands in positions like downward dog, or ask the teacher for an alternative. A good teacher should be able to offer one.

What to Expect

Often, the neck and wrists feel better right away after each round. Over the first week or two, the neck usually turns more easily and many people notice fewer tension headaches. Wrists and thumbs typically ache less by the end of the day, which is often when the discomfort stands out most.

Within four to six weeks, many people notice a stronger grip and less stiffness in the fingers in the morning. The tops of the shoulders often feel looser too, especially if the wall push-up plus has been included.

Exercise can ease these problems, but it will not reverse arthritis in the thumb or finger joints, and it will not cure eye strain. Reducing screen time and breaking it up also make a big difference. If the same screen habits continue and the exercises stop, the symptoms usually return.