That constant tightness at the top of your shoulders and base of your neck? The one where you just want someone to dig their thumbs in and never stop.
It’s not because your upper traps are “too tight” or “overdeveloped.”
It’s because they’re doing too much.
Think of your shoulder like a team.
Some muscles guide.
Some stabilise.
Some produce force.
But when a few of them stop pulling their weight, one muscle steps in and takes over.
That’s your upper traps.
They become the overworked backup crew, doing their job and everyone else’s.
And over time:
They don’t just feel tight.
They feel constantly “on.”
Tender. Achey. Exhausted.
Here’s the part most people miss:
A tight muscle is not the same as a strong muscle.
Your upper traps can feel rock solid and still be weak in the way they actually need to function.
Which is why stretching helps for a bit. Massage feels amazing in the moment. But the tension always comes back.
Because you’re treating the symptom, not the reason it’s happening.
If you want the full breakdown, including the three different types of shoulder pain and how to tell which one you have, Listen to podcast 44💛
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Here’s the 3-minute routine that gets the rest of the team back to work.
✅ 1 minute of roller up the wall (forearms on roller)
This is your MVP. It trains upward rotation, serratus and lower trap, gives you feedback through the forearms, and naturally discourages over-shrugging. This is what actually addresses the root issue for most people.
✅ 1 minute of back body expansion (deep squat or child’s pose)
This is your reset the system move. It restores posterior expansion and ribcage positioning, helps switch off that constant neck and upper trap tone, and creates a better foundation for scapular movement. A lot of upper trap dominance is layered on top of poor breathing mechanics, so this one is sneakily powerful.
✅ 1 minute of chin tucks
Not glamorous, but effective. It reduces forward head posture, takes load off the upper traps, and improves deep neck flexor contribution. Especially useful if you spend a lot of time at a computer or on your phone.
Do this daily for four weeks and see what shifts.
And Save it so you’ve got it on hand, or send it to the friend who’s always rubbing her own neck.