Neck strength may be critical for contact sports like wrestling and football, but for those of us who get our exercise at home, in the gym, or on the pavement, neck strength hardly seems necessary.
However, if you spend most of your day looking up at a computer screen or looking down at a phone screen, you might benefit from performing neck-strengthening exercises a couple times a week.
What Are the Benefits of Neck-Strengthening Exercises?
Neck strength may not rank alongside glute or shoulder strength, but it can change how you feel and function in your workouts and day-to-day activities.
Pain relief
“Someone who frequently experiences neck pain and stiffness, especially after waking up, can benefit from simple exercises like the neck tilt, neck turn, and neck stretch,” says Dr. Gbolahan Okubadejo, M.D., F.A.A.O.S., a board-certified spinal and orthopedic surgeon with offices in New York and New Jersey.
Better posture
Weakness and tightness in the neck and upper-back muscles is a common side effect of sitting in front of a computer all day. If the neck and upper back muscles become weak, your head will tend to droop forward, which adds stress to your cervical spine (the bones, muscles, ligaments, and tendons in your neck). Over time, this stress can lead to neck pain and stiffness.
“Strengthening these muscles with the proper technique can improve posture and move the head closer to a neutral position,” Dr. Okubadejo says. (In a neutral position, your ears will be directly over your shoulders.) “With the muscles strengthened and the neck in a neutral position, this can help alleviate pain and prevent it from coming back,” he says.
How to Do Neck-Strengthening Exercises Safely
So long as you use proper technique and care, there’s no harm in performing neck-strengthening exercises, says Dr. Okubadejo.
- Warm up. To stay safe, spend a few minutes loosening up your neck muscles before jumping into any strength exercises. “This helps restore and maintain any flexibility, allows for a deeper range of motion, and improves overall blood flow,” Dr. Okubadejo explains.
- Move slowly. Second, remember to take your neck exercises slow and steady. Back off or stop altogether if you feel any discomfort.
- Breathe. Also, breathe normally. “A good tip is to exhale during exertion and inhale when relaxing,” Dr. Okubadejo says.
- Don’t do neck exercises if you’re injured. But if you’re recovering from an injury, hold off on the neck exercises until you’ve been given the OK by your doctor.
5 Exercises for Neck Strength and Mobility
The following moves can help strengthen your neck and ease tension you carry there — just keep the above tips in mind before and during activity.
1. Neck circles, or CARs (controlled articular rotations)
- Stand tall and upright, pulling your shoulder blades back and down with your neck neutral and your gaze forward.
- Keeping the rest of your body still, tuck your chin toward your chest and rotate your neck to the left, as if tracing your collarbone with your chin.
- Next, bring your left ear toward your left shoulder as you bend your neck to the left side, and then roll your head back, turning your gaze upward.
- Continue rolling your head toward your right, and tilt your right ear toward your right shoulder. Then trace your chin along your right collarbone until it is again tucked toward your chest.
- Continue for 30 to 60 seconds, and then repeat in the opposite direction.
2. Chin thrust (protraction)
- Stand tall and upright, with your neck neutral and your gaze forward.
- Without tilting your head up and keeping the rest of your body still, press your chin forward as far as it can go without discomfort.
- Pause, then bring your head back to the starting position.
- Repeat for 30 to 60 seconds.
3. Chin tuck (retraction)
- Stand tall and upright, with your neck neutral and your gaze forward.
- Without tilting your head up and keeping the rest of your body still, pull your head back, as if making a double chin.
- Pause, and then bring your head forward to the starting position.
- Repeat for 30 to 60 seconds.
4. Rotation
- Stand tall and upright, with your neck neutral and your gaze forward.
- Keeping the rest of your body still, turn your head to the right as far as it can go without discomfort, feeling the stretch on the left side of your neck.
- Pause, and then return to the starting position.
- Repeat for 30 to 60 seconds, and then switch sides.
5. Isometric hold
- Stand tall and upright, with your neck neutral and your gaze forward. Place your left palm against your left cheek.
- Simultaneously press your palm against your head while gently pressing your head against your palm, engaging the muscles on the left side of your neck.
- Pause, and relax, repeating the sequence for 30 to 60 seconds, then switch sides.