Waking up wondering why do I feel so stiff in the mornings? In this article we explore why, and 3 things you can try to improve how you feel in the morning.
You get out of bed and your back feels like it needs a minute. Your shoulders want a roll. Perhaps those first few steps feel decidedly creakier than the ones you take half an hour later.
Morning stiffness is common, and waking up stiff doesn’t automatically mean there’s something wrong with your body. Stiffness can be more noticeable after you’ve spent a long time relatively still, including overnight, and for many people it starts to ease once they get moving.
But not all morning stiffness is the same. How long yours lasts, whether movement changes it and whether you have pain or other symptoms alongside it can all be useful clues. And before you automatically reach for a big stretch, there are three things we’d suggest trying.
Why do I feel stiff in the morning?
There isn’t one single cause of morning stiffness. One simple part of the picture is that you’ve spent several hours relatively still. We can also feel stiff after other periods of inactivity, such as getting up after sitting for a long time.
But the night itself isn’t necessarily the whole story. Your body arrives in bed after an entire day of sitting, walking, exercising, driving, carrying children, gardening, working or perhaps doing very little at all. A sudden increase or decrease in your usual activity, existing muscle or joint symptoms, sleep and other factors may all influence how you feel the following morning.
So before blaming your mattress, ask another question…
What did yesterday look like?
A morning after eight hours at a desk may feel different from one after a long walk or an unusually strenuous gym session. That doesn’t mean yesterday’s activity caused your stiffness. It simply means morning stiffness is worth looking at in context.
Is it normal to feel stiff in the morning?
An occasional stiff or creaky start to the day that settles as you begin moving is not automatically a sign that something is damaged. And this is important: feeling stiff and actually having lost flexibility aren’t necessarily the same thing. “Stiffness” is a sensation. We can feel tight, restricted or reluctant to move without that automatically telling us that a particular muscle has become too short and needs to be stretched.
That’s one reason we wouldn’t immediately attack the tightest area with the biggest stretch we can manage.
Instead, see what happens when you start moving. Please don’t take morning stiffness as a sign you’re ‘broken’ or need immediate help.
Why do I loosen up once I start moving?
If you’re stiff getting out of bed but barely notice it by the time you’ve showered, dressed and made breakfast, you’re not imagining the change. Stiffness after rest can ease with movement, which is why NHS musculoskeletal guidance encourages people experiencing back stiffness to keep moving and stay active.
The way your stiffness responds gives you useful information. If comfortable movement helps it settle fairly quickly, that’s a very different pattern from stiffness that lasts for hours, is becoming progressively worse or comes with swollen joints or significant pain. So rather than judging your body in the first 30 seconds of the day, give it a chance to wake up first.
Is my mattress causing my morning stiffness?
Possibly, but don’t convict the mattress too quickly.
If you’re uncomfortable in bed, regularly waking because of pain, or your symptoms noticeably changed after changing your mattress or sleeping arrangements, that’s worth considering.
But waking up stiff doesn’t automatically mean you need to buy a new mattress or pillow.
Look at the whole picture: what you did the day before, where you feel stiff, how frequently it happens and, importantly, what happens once you’re moving.
Does morning stiffness mean I need to stretch?
Not necessarily. Stretching isn’t bad, and you may enjoy it. But feeling stiff doesn’t automatically mean a muscle needs to be stretched longer. Think about what many of us do with a stiff back. We immediately bend forward to see how far we can reach. With a stiff neck, we turn until we find the restricted bit.
Essentially, our first movement of the day becomes a test… “Am I still stiff?”
So tomorrow morning, try something different…
3 things to try tomorrow morning
1. Start smaller
Rather than immediately testing the movement that feels most restricted, start with small, comfortable movements.
Let the movement gradually become bigger if it feels comfortable.
You’re not trying to achieve a stretch. You’re simply giving your body a chance to start moving again.
2. Get up and get on with your morning
Walk downstairs or around a room or garden. Open the curtains. Make your tea. Let the dog out.
After two or three minutes of ordinary movement, check again.
Has anything changed? If the answer is yes, that’s worth noticing.
3. Look for a pattern, not a diagnosis
This is perhaps the most useful thing you can do. For the next seven mornings, pay attention to four things:
1. Where do you feel stiff?
2. Roughly how long does the stiffness last?
3. Does ordinary movement make it better, worse or make no noticeable difference?
4. Was yesterday different from usual?
You don’t need a complicated symptom diary. A quick note on your phone is enough. At the end of the week, look back at the whole picture rather than judging each morning individually.
You may start to notice something you hadn’t spotted before.
Look at yesterday, not just last night. When we wake up stiff, it’s easy to immediately blame the night’s sleep, for example the mattress, the pillow, the position we sleep in.
Those things may be relevant, but your body didn’t suddenly appear when you went to bed. Think about the previous day too. Did you spend eight hours at your desk? Did you have a particularly inactive Sunday? Were you gardening for most of the afternoon? Did you drive for several hours? Did you do a harder gym session than usual? Were you carrying children, shopping bags or moving furniture?
This doesn’t mean any one of those things caused your morning stiffness. You’re looking for patterns, not trying to diagnose yourself. Perhaps you discover that you’re particularly stiff after an unusually inactive day. Maybe it’s more noticeable the morning after certain activities. Perhaps it normally disappears once you’ve showered and walked around. Or perhaps it’s gradually taking longer to ease.
When should I be more concerned about morning stiffness?
This is where morning stiffness deserves a little more attention.
The NHS advises speaking to a GP if your joints are stiff for more than 30 minutes after waking. Prolonged morning joint stiffness can occur with inflammatory conditions such as rheumatoid arthritis, particularly when accompanied by symptoms such as joint pain, swelling, warmth or tenderness.
That doesn’t mean stiffness lasting 31 minutes means you have arthritis. It means persistent or prolonged stiffness shouldn’t simply be self-diagnosed as tight muscles. It’s also sensible to seek advice if your symptoms are worsening, repeatedly affecting your normal activities or sleep, or you’re otherwise concerned about them. If you’re not sure what is best, our helpful reception team would be happy to advise you.
What if it’s my back that’s stiff every morning?
Back stiffness after resting is common. If it settles as you start moving and isn’t significantly affecting you, keeping active may be all you need. But if your back stiffness is accompanied by ongoing or recurring pain, is getting worse, affecting your sleep or activities, or simply isn’t settling, it’s worth getting advice rather than endlessly trying different stretches.
You can also read our guide to ongoing and recurring lower back pain.
Could stress be contributing to how stiff you feel?
It’s also worth thinking beyond what you’ve physically done.
Stress can show up physically too. The NHS lists muscle tension or pain as one of the physical symptoms of stress, and stress can also affect how well we sleep.
That doesn’t mean stress is necessarily causing your morning stiffness, or that what you’re feeling is “all in your head”. But if you’ve had a particularly stressful week, you’re sleeping poorly, your shoulders have been permanently up around your ears and you’re feeling more tense than usual, it’s worth considering that as part of the picture too.
So when you’re thinking about yesterday, don’t only ask: Did I sit too much or exercise more than usual?”. You could also ask: “How was I feeling?”
Our physical and mental wellbeing aren’t completely separate. Sometimes understanding what’s happening means looking at both.
Read NHS advice about stress and its physical symptoms
The bit we’d like you to remember
Your body isn’t necessarily broken because it feels stiff when you first get out of bed.
Give it a chance to move before deciding something needs fixing.
And if morning stiffness is becoming a regular feature of your day, don’t just keep stretching the same spot and hoping for the best.
Pay attention to the pattern. Some sort of journal can be really useful to monitor all areas of your wellbeing.
If you need some help understanding that pattern, a physiotherapy assessment can look at your symptoms, movement, activity and individual circumstances rather than simply treating whichever bit happens to feel stiff.
At Body Reset Clinic in Hartley Wintney, that’s exactly what we’re interested in. Helping you understand what’s happening and what you can do about it.