· 6 min
Stretching when you sit all day: the whole picture
What sitting actually does, which body parts to spend your time on, how long to hold, and how little it takes to keep up. The hub for everything else we have written.
Lucy for iPhone
Five minutes. That's the entire commitment.
You don't need to be flexible. Not reaching your toes is the reason to start, not a reason to wait.
Short stretching routines for people who sit all day. A timer counts you through it. Miss a day and nothing happens.
- No account, ever
- Works offline
- One routine free forever
- iPhone · iOS 18+
How it works
Three steps, and then you're done.
- 01
Pick a routine
Sorted by what's tight and how long you've got.
- 02
Follow the timer
One stretch on screen. It tells you when to switch sides.
- 03
Done
Back to your day. Miss tomorrow and nothing breaks.
What it is actually like
One stretch on screen, and a timer that counts it.
You pick a routine and put the phone down. Lucy says the name of the stretch, counts the hold, and tells you when to switch sides, so you are not doing arithmetic with your eyes shut.
Any stretch can be shortened before you start, and it remembers what you chose. Any routine can be left part-way through, and nothing is recorded against you for it.
Five minutes. That's the entire commitment.
No account, no email address, and it works offline.
Where you can do it
A square metre, fully dressed, no mat.
Three of the sixteen routines need no floor at all. They were built for hotel rooms, open-plan offices and the two feet beside a kitchen counter.
The rest work on a carpet. A cushion under the knees makes the kneeling ones easier, and nothing in the app assumes you own any equipment.
Inside the app
One stretch on screen. Nothing else asking for you.
Who it is for
Made for people who sit still for a living.
Not for anyone chasing the splits.
You sit at a desk all day
Shoulders up by your ears by mid-afternoon. This puts them back down.
You drive for a living
Hips that won't straighten out at the end of a shift.
You've been meaning to start
Knowing was never the problem. This is built for the doing.
You can't touch your toes
Good. Every stretch has a version that works from a chair.
Free and paid
One routine is free forever.
Not a preview, and not a trial. The whole routine, with the timer and the side-change cues.
Free
One complete routine, forever. No account, no email address, and it works offline.
Subscription
The other fifteen routines, with a 7-day free trial. Priced in your own currency on the App Store.
Questions
The ones worth asking.
- Do I need to be flexible already?
- No, and that's the point. Every stretch has a chair or standing version, and the app tells you where to feel it, not how far to go.
- How long does it take?
- Four to six minutes. Nothing in the app runs longer than six.
- Do I need a mat?
- Not for all of it. Several routines work standing, fully dressed, in about a square metre.
- What's free?
- One routine, forever: the whole thing, not a preview. The other fifteen are a subscription with a 7-day free trial, priced in your own currency on the App Store.
- Is it safe for my back or neck?
- Lucy is a stretching app, not a clinician, and it doesn't know your history. If something hurts, stop. If you have an injury or a condition, or you're pregnant or postpartum, talk to a professional before starting. Please read the Fitness & Safety Disclaimer.
Articles
All articlesWhy you're stiff, and what actually helps.
· 6 min
Tight hips from sitting all day
Why the front of the hip is the first thing a chair shortens, five stretches that cover it, and why hip tightness is often what you feel in your lower back.
· 5 min
Why can't I touch my toes?
It is usually hamstrings and hip position rather than anything structural, and arm and torso proportions play a part. What actually changes it, and roughly what the research says about the dose.
Five minutes. That's the entire commitment.
Lucy walks you through one stretch at a time and tells you when to switch sides. One routine is free in full, forever.