Morning routine
Morning stretches, and what the first thirty minutes tell you
A short sequence for a stiff morning, and the one thing worth timing while you do it.
Clinically reviewed by Lee Albert, NMT · 8 August 2026
Why mornings are stiff
A body that has been still for seven or eight hours has less fluid movement through its joints and less give in the soft tissue around them. That is ordinary, it is not damage, and it is why the first few minutes of the day feel worse than the rest of it. Movement is what resolves it, which is an awkward fact when moving is the thing that feels least appealing.
The practical answer is not to stretch harder. It is to move earlier and smaller, in positions that ask almost nothing of you, and to let the range come back rather than going and fetching it.
The one thing worth timing
How long the stiffness lasts is more informative than how bad it feels. Guidance for diagnosing osteoarthritis describes morning joint stiffness that settles within about thirty minutes as the ordinary pattern, and it treats prolonged morning stiffness as an atypical feature worth a closer look rather than something to work through.
So it is worth noticing, once, roughly how long yours takes to ease. If you are consistently past that half hour, or the stiffness comes with heat, swelling or feeling unwell, that is a conversation with a clinician rather than a longer stretching routine. It does not mean anything is seriously wrong. It means the answer might not be stretching.
How to use the sequence below
It runs about ten minutes and it goes floor to standing, so it finishes with you upright and ready rather than lying down. Two of the movements can be done in bed if getting to the floor first thing is the obstacle, and that is a reasonable adaptation rather than a lesser version.
Move at the pace of your breath rather than counting. If a position is uncomfortable, make it smaller before you consider skipping it: a small movement done daily is worth considerably more here than a large one done occasionally.
The sequence
- 1
Knees to chest · 30 to 60 seconds
The gentlest possible start, and one you can do before you have properly got out of bed.
- 2
Supine twist, small range · 60 seconds each side
Rotation is usually the first thing a night of stillness takes, and a small supported version gets it back without asking for effort.
- 3
Mini bridge · 8 to 10 slow lifts
Wakes up the back of the hips, which are the muscles you are about to stand up on.
- 4
Cat cow · 60 to 90 seconds
The clearest way to move the whole spine in both directions, and the point where most people feel the morning shift.
- 5
Sphinx · 30 to 60 seconds
A low, supported extension to balance the folding, and a useful read on how your back is today.
- 6
Supported forward fold · 30 to 60 seconds
Reaches the back of the legs on the way up to standing, with the blocks meaning you do not have to reach the floor.
- 7
Standing overhead reach · 30 to 60 seconds
Finishes you upright and lengthened rather than folded, which is the position the rest of the day happens in.
About ten minutes. Knees to chest and the small supine twist can be done in bed if the floor is the obstacle first thing. Make anything smaller rather than skipping it.
What the research says
There is no guideline that prescribes a morning stretching routine, and any page claiming otherwise is overstating what is known. What published guidance does say is more useful and slightly different: for osteoarthritis, NICE recommends therapeutic exercise tailored to the person for everyone with the condition, and it explicitly warns that joint pain may increase when you start, while regular consistent exercise remains beneficial for the joints. That is the permission most people are actually looking for at seven in the morning.
The same guidance is where the thirty-minute figure above comes from. It describes the clinical picture of osteoarthritis as activity-related joint pain with either no morning stiffness or morning stiffness lasting no longer than about half an hour, and it lists prolonged morning stiffness among the atypical features that point somewhere else. That is why this page asks you to notice the duration rather than simply handing you a routine.
Nothing here is a diagnosis and nothing here is treatment for one. It is a short, low-demand sequence for a stiff morning, drawn from the clinically authored Vinys library.
Sources
- 1NICE NG226, osteoarthritis in over 16s (2022), recommendation 1.1.1
Osteoarthritis is diagnosed clinically in people 45 or over with activity-related joint pain and either no morning joint-related stiffness or morning stiffness lasting no longer than 30 minutes; prolonged morning stiffness is listed as an atypical feature.
- 2NICE NG226, osteoarthritis in over 16s (2022), recommendations 1.3.1 and 1.3.3
Offer therapeutic exercise tailored to the person for all people with osteoarthritis, and advise that joint pain may increase when starting it while regular consistent exercise remains beneficial for the joints.
Common questions
Is it bad to stretch first thing in the morning?
No. The old advice about being more injury-prone before you have warmed up is aimed at loaded, end-range and ballistic stretching, not at the gentle, supported movement in this sequence. Starting small and staying within a comfortable range is the sensible version of that caution.
How long should morning stretches take?
The sequence here is about ten minutes. Consistency matters more than length: a short routine most days does more than a long one on Sundays.
Should I stretch before or after getting out of bed?
Either. The first two movements are done lying down and work perfectly well in bed, which is the easiest way to begin if the floor is the thing that puts you off.
My stiffness lasts more than half an hour. Does that matter?
It is worth mentioning to a clinician. Guidance for osteoarthritis treats morning stiffness that settles within about thirty minutes as the ordinary pattern and prolonged stiffness as an atypical feature worth looking at. It is not a sign that something is seriously wrong, but it does suggest the answer may not be more stretching.
Should stretching hurt?
You are looking for the sensation of a stretch, not pain. Guidance for osteoarthritis does note that joint pain can increase when you first start exercising and that consistent exercise still benefits the joints, so some discomfort early on is not a reason to stop. Sharp pain, or symptoms travelling down an arm or a leg, is.
What if I only have five minutes?
Do knees to chest, cat cow and the standing reach. That covers a fold, the full spine in both directions, and finishing upright.
This is general movement information, not medical advice, and it is not a diagnosis. Speak to a clinician before starting if you have had a recent injury, a fragility fracture, or surgery on your spine or hips. Stop and speak to a clinician if a movement brings on sharp pain, dizziness, or symptoms that travel down an arm or a leg, and seek urgent care for any loss of bladder or bowel control or numbness around the saddle area.
Also called morning stretches, morning stretch routine, stretches to do in the morning, morning stretches for stiffness, wake up stretches. Movements are drawn from the clinically authored Vinys library. This page is general movement information, not medical advice, and it is not a diagnosis. How the method works.