How to Strengthen Your Neck
You probably haven’t actively thought about how to strengthen your neck, but you wake up after you “slept funny” and you’ve got a crick. Then that crick turns into a lot of pain in and around your neck that just won’t go away by itself. At this point most people start to wonder if a Chiropractor would be good solution or if this is “just” neck pain they will have to live with. The good news, a chiropractor can help you with neck issues.
Whatever caused your neck pain or injury, this article discusses common neck injuries, how you can strengthen your neck, and how a chiropractor can help you prevent or alleviate further neck pain.
What are the Most Common Neck Injuries?
The eight nerves in your neck are also connected to your shoulders, your arms, and your hands. Any one or several of these nerves can be pinched, which can cause localized pain, numbness, and tingling.
The Most Common Neck Injuries I Treat are:
- Soreness from repetitive stress.
- Pain from a new or a past sports injury like heading a soccer ball, a bike accident, a football collision, a basketball scrimmage, or a baseball/softball mishap.
- Discomfort from poor posture.
- Pinched nerves from lifting something heavy or a fall.
- Stiffness from a vehicle accident that involved whiplash.
How Can You Strengthen Your Neck?
A flexible stronger neck is a healthy neck and you can have one by doing just five minutes a day of neck exercises. They’re quick, easy, and have been used by hundreds of my patients over the years.
Here are some stretches that I recommend. Each of these can be started in smaller groups of five, once a day, then increased to ten, three times a day:
- Flexion – Bend your chin slowly to your chest.
- Extension – Raise your chin slowly away from your chest.
- Lateral Flexion – Move your neck side to side, ear to your shoulder. Start with a grouping of repetitions to your right ear, followed by a grouping to your left ear.
- Rotation – Pretend that you’re a lighthouse; look slowly to the right and then to the left.
- Chin tucks – Retract your head so you get a double chin, then extend your head forward keeping your chin level. I like to call this one the chicken neck.
You need a flexible neck before you can strengthen. If any of these movements cause pain, refrain from doing them and see your chiropractor. For how to strengthen your neck, just add resistance by placing a gym ball between your head and the wall and push into it using the same movements as the stretches.
How Can a Chiropractor Help You?
At Balanced Chiropractic, my goal is to help you attain the highest level of health possible in the shortest time possible. During our initial comprehensive consultation and exam, we’ll discuss why you’re here, and your history of when your neck issues began. We’ll also discuss the broad spectrum of techniques and therapies I recommend so that I can personalize my treatment plan to fit your exact goals and needs.
During our appointments, you can expect chiropractic adjustments to restore the proper movement and alignment to your neck. My goal is to remove any interference from your nervous system due to pressure or inflammation.
I encourage you to start stretching and exercising your neck and feel the benefits from strengthening it. If you have any questions about the exercises or would like to speak to me about your specific neck issues, I can be reached by calling or filling out the contact form on this website.
