Stick lat stretch
The stick lat stretch eases the large flat muscle that runs from under your armpit down to your lower back (latissimus dorsi), along with the other muscles that pull the arm down and back. You sit with a broomstick standing upright in front of you, rest your hands on the top, then let the stick tip forward as you lean from the hips and your head drops between your arms. The arms stay loose, and you feel the stretch below the armpits and down each side of your back.
How to do the stick lat stretch
- Sit upright on a sturdy chair with your feet flat and a little apart. Stand a broomstick or similar pole upright on the floor between your feet, just in front of your toes.
- Rest both hands on the top of the stick and let it take the weight of your arms.
- Keeping the tip of the stick on the floor, let the top tip slowly away from you as you lean forward from the hips and your arms reach forward.
- Let your head drop gently between your arms. Go as far as feels comfortable, until you feel a stretch below the armpits, with the arms loose and floppy rather than pushing on the stick.
- Hold and breathe slowly. Then bring the stick back upright as you sit up, lifting your head last.
What you should feel
A stretch below both armpits and down the sides of your back, sometimes reaching round to the backs of the shoulders. Your neck should feel loose, not strained.
Common mistakes
- Gripping the stick and bracing the shoulders instead of letting the arms hang from it.
- Letting the stick slide away faster than your body follows.
- Curling hard through the lower back instead of tipping forward from the hips.
- Sitting up fast with the head leading.
How often
Many programs use 3 to 5 holds of 20 to 30 seconds, once or twice a day. Your physio will adjust this.
Stop and check with your physio if
- Sharp or pinching pain in a shoulder or your neck as you reach forward.
- Pain, pins and needles or numbness spreading down your arm or into your hand.
- Pins and needles in your arm or hand that do not go away after you stop, or part of your arm or hand goes numb. Get medical advice the same day. If one side of your face or body suddenly goes numb or weak, or your speech becomes slurred or muddled, call emergency services, even if it goes away.
- You feel dizzy or lightheaded as you bend forward or sit back up. Stop, stay seated and let it pass. If it keeps happening, get medical advice the same day before you try again, and call emergency services if it does not settle within a few minutes of sitting still. If you faint while exercising, call emergency services, even if you feel fine again quickly.
- An electric shock feeling runs down your back or into your arms or legs as your head bends forward. Stop and get medical advice the same day.
From the clinic
A broom handle, mop handle or walking pole all work. Put the tip on a mat or carpet where it cannot skid, and use a chair without wheels. In the video the stick stays near the feet while its top travels forward, so your arms end up reaching out and a little up in front of you. With no pole to hand, the seated lat stretch on a table lets the table hold your arms, and the seated lat stretch works on one side at a time.
Leaning forward rounds your spine. If you have low bone density (osteoporosis) or have had a fracture in your spine, keep the lean mostly at the hips, stay gentle and ask your physio how deep a lean is safe for you.
If you have had a hip replacement, get the go-ahead from your surgeon or physio before you try the stick lat stretch. Leaning forward from the hips while you sit bends the hip past a right angle, and many surgeons ask you to avoid that for the first months after some operations.
After shoulder surgery, including a rotator cuff repair, or after a shoulder fracture or dislocation, follow your surgeon's or physio's plan, and do only the movements and range they have cleared. Many plans allow only passive movement at first, where the arm is moved for you and its muscles stay relaxed. Leaning forward with your hands on the stick lifts the arms well up in front of you, which some operations limit in the early weeks, so check first.
Written and checked by the PocketPhysio editorial team. Last updated 2026-09-28.
This page is general education, not a diagnosis or a personal treatment plan. If you have pain, an injury or a health condition, see a physiotherapist or doctor before starting new exercises.
