Performing stretching exercises for the neck muscles is extremely beneficial because they improve blood circulation and relieve tension in the cervical region. The muscles of the neck are not only responsible for its agility, they also constantly support the head in the desired position.
Working at a computer for a long time, which requires considerable concentration, an uncomfortable workplace, sleeping in an uncomfortable position are the most popular factors that can cause headaches or discomfort in the neck. This is why it is so important to stretch your neck. After stretching the neck muscles, your head becomes clear, you are filled with strength and new ideas. Agree, it is better to devote fifteen minutes every day to physical exercise than to constantly suffer from periodic or constant physical pain due to a sedentary lifestyle.
Stretching exercises for the neck muscles are recommended not only for those who are familiar with sports, but also for those who do not often engage in active activities. We offer you a set of exercises that will have a positive effect on your neck: improve blood circulation, prevent or relieve pain in the neck and relax its muscles. For best results, neck stretching exercises should be performed regularly.
Neck rotation
The exercise is best performed sitting with a straight back, hands on your knees. Turn your head to the side, relax your neck, and slowly roll your head from one side to the other. Do the same by throwing your head back. After several approaches on each side, make a full rotation of your neck in one direction and the other.
Important: Do not force yourself in this exercise. The neck should be relaxed. If you experience any discomfort or pain, stop the exercise immediately.
Deep neck stretch
This exercise will provide a deep stretch to the back muscles of the neck and upper back muscles.
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- Find a comfortable position on a chair or on the floor.
- Place your hands behind your head.
- Slowly lower your head down, trying to touch your chin to your chest.
- Stay in this position for up to 40 seconds.
- Slowly lift your head up, returning it to the starting position.
- Put your hands down.
Stretching the oblique muscles of the neck
Without changing your sitting position, turn your head to the right 45 degrees, pointing your ear towards your chest, tilt your head down. You can help yourself with your hand, swinging your head with smooth movements. Hold the head position at maximum tension for two seconds. Then repeat the exercise on the other side, also moving your head 45 degrees back - to the right and left.
Important: the body must be motionless, do not raise your shoulders, only move your head.
By regularly performing these simple neck stretching exercises, you will feel positive results within a few days. But don’t forget about proper lifestyle, nutrition and good mood!
How to do stretching and strengthening exercises for your neck and shoulder muscles
You will need a chair. Sit on the edge, straighten your back, lower and straighten your shoulders. Do each exercise for 10–15 seconds.
Turns and tilts
Turn your head to the right so that your chin is in line with your shoulder. Hold and then repeat the movement in the other direction.
Return to the starting position, tilt your head and look at the floor. Move your chin to the right and then to the left - this will increase the tension in the neck muscles.
Take the starting position, and then stretch your arms forward as if you are trying to reach something. Feel the stretch between your shoulder blades.
Chin to chest
Bend your head strongly, as if you are trying to reach your chin to your chest. Feel the stretch in the back of your neck and down to your shoulder blades.
Tilt your head again, but now clasp your hands and place them on top of your head, increasing the pressure. You can rotate your chin slightly to the right and left to shift the tension.
Dropped Shoulder Stretch
Lower your chin down diagonally to the right, while simultaneously reaching your left hand towards the floor. Repeat on the other side.
Semicircle head
Lower your chin towards your right shoulder. Without raising your head, slowly move it to your left shoulder, as if drawing a semicircle with your chin on your chest. Repeat on the other side.
Do not throw your head back at the extreme points: this creates unnecessary stress on the cervical spine. Do the exercise smoothly.
Sliding back and forth
Move your chin forward as if it were sliding in one line, then retract it.
Shoulder movements
Move your shoulders forward and then move them back and raise your elbows. Feel the stretch in your pectoral muscles. After this, raise your shoulders up, as if trying to reach your ears, and then lower them down.
Elbow circles
Spread your elbows to the sides, place your palms on your shoulders. Rotate your arms, trying to increase the amplitude.
Arm stretching
Lower and slightly spread your arms, palms forward, so that they do not touch the body. Stretch your fingers towards the floor, feel the stretch in your shoulders and elbows.
Relax and turn your hands with your palms back. Pull them down again and then pull them back without releasing the tension.
Strengthening the lateral neck muscles
Place your palm over your right ear. Half-heartedly press your hand on your head, trying to tilt it towards the opposite shoulder. Tighten your neck muscles, resist the pressure and keep your head upright. Repeat the same on the left.
Strengthening the front of the neck
Clasp your hands and place them on your forehead. Apply gentle pressure while trying to move your head back. Resisting the pressure, keep your neck straight.
Strengthening the back of the neck
Clasp your hands, place them on the back of your head and apply light pressure. Resisting the pressure, keep your neck straight.
Hands down with a towel
Take the towel by the ends, pull it tight and move your straight arms behind your head. Bend your elbows and try to lower them. The lower your elbows are, the better the muscles will stretch.
Transferring hands behind head
Take the towel by the ends, pull it taut and move your arms straight up. Bring your upper body forward and move your straight arms with the towel further behind your head.
The neck area is often overlooked when stretching, although these muscles play an important role in supporting the head and balancing the entire body. All flexibility programs should begin with the jaws and neck. Never turn your head. Firstly, and most importantly, the bones are erased. Secondly, nerve fibers, ligaments, tendons and blood vessels are irritated. The result may be pain and limited mobility. Such neck injuries are especially painful because the brain and spinal cord are located in close proximity to the neck. Thirdly, when rotating, the muscles do not relax or lengthen. Fourthly, the nerve can be pinched or disrupted, especially when the head is tilted back as far as possible. And finally, when the head rotates, blood vessels can be pinched. This will lead to a temporary reduction in blood supply to the brain and dizziness, which can become chronic.
Tucking your chin to your chest is intentionally excluded from neck stretches because most people do it involuntarily throughout the day. Sitting at a desk or in front of a computer, or even reading while lying in bed, lengthens the muscles in the back of your neck. Thus, these muscles rarely need stretching. Among those who benefit from pressing the chin to the chest may be a painter who often has to lift his head while working.
Stretches in the muscles of the back of the neck.
Stand up straight; Take a comfortable position. With your chin parallel to the ground, look over your right shoulder so that your face is turned 90″ from the midline of your torso. Stay in this position for 30 seconds. Breathe evenly. Repeat the movement in the other direction. This stretch can make it easier for you to select a line when driving.
Chin retraction.
Stand up straight; Take a comfortable position. Keeping your head straight, tuck your chin in so your face tilts slightly forward. Stay in this position for 30 seconds. Breathe evenly. This movement stretches the muscles located below the base of the skull and at the back of the neck.
Typical case: classic migraine.
Disease history. S.T.
A 22-year-old sound engineer, all his life he suffered from headaches that occurred at least twice a week. Headaches were caused by low blood sugar, chocolate, nuts and red wine.
Diagnosis. The compression of the nerve endings in the upper neck caused muscle tension and associated headaches and migraines.
Treatment. Reduction of the cervical vertebrae of the upper spine, stretching and diet.
The result of treatment.
No headaches for 2 years. Note. The patient learned to manage his condition with the help of stretching.
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Stretching the pectoralis clavicular muscle
- First of all, you need to turn your head to the side as much as possible.
- Next, you need to make a movement as if you want to touch your shoulder with your ear.
- Freeze in this position for 20-30 seconds, and then perform the same exercise, but in the other direction.
These are quite simple and not time-consuming exercises that you can always do in your home or office, in any free time. Be healthy.
Trapezius stretch
This type of stretching works both the neck and shoulder muscles.
- Take your right hand behind your back and place it on the palm of your left hand.
- Slowly move your right hand towards your left leg.
- At the same time, bring your left ear to your shoulder.
- Stay in this position for 20 seconds.
- Follow the same steps on the right side.
The same exercise can be performed by placing your hands in front of you. This also ensures that your trapezius muscles get a good stretch, but from a slightly different angle.
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Longitudinal stretch
This exercise is a must for those people who constantly work on a computer. If you have problems with cervical osteochondrosis, then you should try to perform this exercise without fail.
- First of all, you need to look forward and stand as straight as possible.
- Then you need to tilt your head to the side, try to reach your shoulder with your ear. The shoulders should remain in one place.
- You must remain in this position for at least 30 seconds.
Stretch with folded arms
Exercise for stretching the biceps and shoulders.
- Performed while standing. Place your feet shoulder-width apart.
- Bring your right arm in front of your chest and keep it parallel to the ground.
- Take your right hand near your elbow with your left hand and smoothly move it towards your chest.
- Stay in this position for up to 20 seconds.
- Repeat these steps for the second hand.
Neck stretching
By performing such exercises, you can not only significantly improve the condition of the cervical spine, but also correct some other features of your body.
- Stand up straight and look straight ahead.
- The elbows must be straight, and the hands are focused in one place. This is necessary to ensure that the shoulders are in the same position during stretching.
- We lower our chin, trying to touch our chest with it.
- Stay in this position for 30 seconds.
The same exercise can be performed even at work, sitting on a chair. You should hold the chair with your feet and do the same exercise.
Spinal stretching exercises
First, let's look at exercises that can be done both at home and in the office.
Head tilts forward and backward
The exercise can be performed both standing and sitting.
- Bend your head forward and place your chin on your chest.
- Tilt your head back and pull your chin up.
Bend forward towards your feet
Stand with your arms at your sides.
- Lean forward, clasp your ankles with your hands, pull your chest towards your legs and reach your head towards your feet.
- Return to the starting position.
Deflection in the lower back
Stand with your hands on your lower back.
- Bend your back, tilt your head back and down.
- Return to the starting position.
There are also two very well-known and effective exercises for stretching the spine, which are only suitable for home use - cat and cobra.
Cat
Get on all fours.
- Arch your back up, lower your head down, pushing your chin down and back, fix the position for how many seconds.
- Raise your head up and bend your back, also hold this position for some time.
Cobra
Lie on your stomach, bend your arms at the elbows and place them on the floor so that your palms are at chin level.
- Extend your arms, bending at the waist and raising your body.
- Return to the starting position.
When performing each of these exercises, you can do from 10 to 25 repetitions. The static option also gives a good effect, when each position is fixed for a long time - half a minute, a minute or more.
Read more about cervical traction
Since all people on Earth have different builds and heights, they have corresponding differences in the length of the cervical spine. Many people don’t even realize that it is because of problems with the cervical vertebrae that they can experience severe headaches. But these vertebrae are very mobile and very often various problems can arise with them.
These vertebrae contain a thick artery, which is located close to the lateral surface of the vertebrae and rises to the brain. Its close location to the vertebrae can play a cruel joke at any moment. So, for example, if a person experiences any inflammation or the formation of a hernia, the vertebral artery experiences severe pain due to the resulting spasm.
A person feels such a spasm in the form of tinnitus and dizziness. Often the noise occurs as a result of a sharp turn or after throwing back the head. In medicine, the symptoms presented are called the “Sistine Chapel”. As a result of spasm, a characteristic disturbance of blood flow in the vessels occurs.
Many people do not believe the fact that a person is slightly taller in the morning than in the evening. This phenomenon is caused by different thicknesses of the intervertebral discs, which affects the mobility of the cervical spine. In the evening, the head, which weighs at least 5 kg, exerts strong pressure and the distance decreases
Therefore, stretching the spine during the day is important and beneficial. It must be done at work or at home at least once a day.
Here you can use various devices, such as loops or weights.
You should know and remember that such devices can also cause pain, so they should be used with caution and only on the advice of your doctor. This type of spinal traction is difficult to control for older people whose vertebral elasticity has already been lost due to age.
During traction, they need to carefully control their sensations and regulate the degree of load on the vertebrae.
For older people, traction of 1 mm may be sufficient. If the condition improves, that is, the pain is eliminated, you can stop traction, since you have already significantly reduced the pressure of the vertebrae and normalized the tone of the blood vessels. Traction also has an excellent effect on improving venous outflow from the skull, as a result of which thinking improves and the brain begins to work in concentration. You can also do some head movements while stretching. This will only improve the effect.
Traction of the cervical vertebrae can also be done in a lying position on your own. To do this, simply roll up a towel and place it as a cushion under your neck. This exercise is safer and should not cause pain.
Exercise No. 13 “Stretch your neck yourself”
Lie on your back and place a towel as a cushion under your lower back. Place your hands on your neck. The thumbs are under the chin, and the rest are intertwined at the back of the head. Slightly bending your head, pull it with your hands up along the straight path of the spinal axis. You can also make not only bends, but also small turns to the sides.
Exercises should not exceed 20 seconds. Do several repetitions.
If you are an office employee or a driver, you can also do similar stretches while sitting without leaving your workplace. To do this, take an even position on a chair and stretch your neck upward.
Shoulder rotations
This exercise will help you relieve tension in the shoulder area.
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- Stand or sit on a chair and keep your back and neck straight.
- Raise your shoulders and gently roll them back and down.
- Press your chin inwards a little.
