The towel stretch behind the back helps a stiff shoulder win back the reach behind you that you use for a back pocket, a bra clasp or washing your back. You hang a towel over your good shoulder, hold the lower end behind your back with the hand of the stiff side, and pull up with the top hand so the lower hand slides up your back toward the shoulder blade. The top arm does the work, while the stiff shoulder is eased into turning inward (internal rotation).

How to do the towel stretch behind the back

Stand tall with your feet a comfortable distance apart. Hang a towel over the shoulder of your good arm so the long end falls down your back.
Hold the towel with the hand of your good arm, just above that shoulder.
Reach behind your back with the stiff arm and take hold of the lower end of the towel, at about the level of your lower back.
Pull the towel slowly straight up with the top hand, so your lower hand slides up your back toward the shoulder blade. Stop where you feel a stretch at the front of the stiff shoulder.
Hold briefly, then let the top hand come down slowly so the lower hand slides back down. Repeat.

What you should feel

A stretch at the front of the shoulder on the lower arm, as the voice guide describes, and sometimes at the back of the joint. Your top arm works to pull and may feel stretched under the upper arm.

Common mistakes

Bending sideways or leaning forward to get the lower hand higher.
Letting the towel pull the lower hand away from your back, so the elbow flares out.
Tugging in quick jerks instead of pulling smoothly.
Shrugging both shoulders up toward your ears.

How often

Many programs use 10 to 15 slow pulls, or 3 to 5 holds of 15 to 30 seconds, once or twice a day. Your physio will adjust this.

Stop and check with your physio if

Sharp pain or a catch in either shoulder, or pain that keeps building with each pull.
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.
A sudden pop or tearing feeling in the shoulder that brings sharp pain, new weakness or trouble lifting the arm. Stop and contact your surgical team the same day, or get medical advice the same day if you have not had surgery.
The shoulder feels as if it has slipped out of place, looks a different shape or suddenly locks so you cannot move the arm, or your hand turns cold, pale or blue. Go to an emergency department straight away, without driving yourself, and do not try to put the shoulder back in yourself.

From the clinic

This is the towel version of shoulder internal rotation with a stick, and it moves the stiff shoulder in the same way. All you need is a towel. In the video, the top hand pulls it all the way up above the head. Keep the stiff arm passive, as though someone else were moving it, and let the pull come from above. Stop at a stretch that still lets you breathe easily.

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. After a rotator cuff repair or a shoulder replacement, a hand behind the back puts the repaired tendons and the front of the joint on stretch, so it is usually not allowed for at least the first 6 weeks. Get your surgeon's or physio's go-ahead first.

Physios often use this stretch for a frozen shoulder, with the firmness of the pull matched to how sore the shoulder is at the time. The top arm has to reach up and pull, so if your good shoulder is sore or stiff as well, ask your physio for another setup, such as the sleeper stretch, done lying on your side.

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.

Towel stretch behind the back