Exercises for Neck Pain
Suffering from neck pain is pretty common. The causes of neck pain can be numerous. Typically, it all comes down to poor posture, which leads to straining the neck muscles. In fact, when our upper back, chest and neck muscles become too weak, too tight or elongated, our shoulders tend to round up and our head starts leaning forward. This is the poor posture we’re talking about, as it puts way more stress on the spine, ligaments and muscles. As a result, we end up having neck pain that can go from negligible to relentless. Since this is a health-related issue, you must try to find a way to resolve it as soon as possible.
Fortunately, there are exercises for you to try out to relieve pain. Stay tuned to find out more!
1. Neck Stretching
Doing stretching exercises can improve your flexibility by expanding the range of motion in your cervical joints. As a result, the stiffness in your neck will become relieved and your pain will disappear. That’s why we recommend performing these exercises every single day, if not even a couple of times a day. Here are a couple of neck exercises we recommend trying out:
- Neck Tilt
Start from your sitting position and tilt the head towards your chest. Your chin should be touching the chest. Once you reach that position, hold it for a couple of seconds and return to the starting point. Repeat this movement at least five times.
- Side-to-Side Tilt
From the same position you started from earlier, tilt the head towards one of your shoulders. Your ear should lead the movement. Hold that position for a couple of seconds and then go back to the starting point. Perform the same thing on the opposite side. Repeat the movement on both sides at least five times.
- Neck Turn
Start by looking straight ahead and slowly turn the head to one side, without changing the chin level. Perform the same movement five times on each side.
- Neck Strech
Starting from the regular straight position, tilt your chin forward and stretch your throat. Hold that position for a couple of seconds and then push the chin backward. You already know the drill! Repeat the same thing both forward and backward at least five times.
2. Neck Strengthening Exercises
If you want to improve your posture, you should work on making your neck stronger. By doing neck strengthening exercises, you will basically lessen flare-ups of pain. As far as the frequency goes, you should be doing these exercises every other day. The reason for that is that muscles need time to heal afterward and repair themselves.
3. Aerobic Exercises
Aerobic exercises, known as cardio exercises, rely on making your heart race and elevating your breathing levels. These exercises lead to an increased blood flow throughout the body and most importantly, through the upper back and the neck. The increased blood flow works on loosening up the muscles and increasing the range of motion. That means that these exercises can help fight neck pain. What’s more, doing thirty minutes of exercise makes the body release endorphins, which are natural painkillers, and that is another thing that will help reduce neck pain.
We recommend performing aerobic exercises daily. Try throwing in some running, elliptical and some free weight workouts, and you’ll see that the neck pain will vanish in no time!
When Should You Exercise?
You shouldn’t forget that this condition concerns your health. And as you must know already, exercising keeps us strong and healthy.
If you’re wondering whether you should be doing these exercises, here’s what you need to know. As long as you don’t feel weakness in your arms or hands, you can do these exercises. In fact, if you feel even the slightest pain in your neck, that should be a sign for you to start as soon as possible. If you start on time, you’ll have fewer difficulties in easing the pain and stiffness.
You should expect the pain to go away in less than two weeks. If you’re suffering from severe neck pain, it might take a month. However, once the pain stops, we recommend you to continue with the exercises. That way you’ll prevent the same scenario from happening again.
We hope this article helps you win the fight you’re having with the pain in your neck. Remember to stay persistent with the exercises, and you’ll see results before you know it.
