In this video, I'm going to show you the best neck exercises to
do everyday to keep pain away. Stay tuned!
Hey, everyone. Doctor Rowe coming to you from SpineCare in Saint
Joseph, Michigan. In this video, I want to share with you
some of my favorite neck mobility exercises that you can
do every single day. Not only will they focus on quick neck
pain relief but they may also help future proof and lessen
instances of neck pain, tightness, stiffness, and even
headaches. All of these exercises hit the neck just a
little bit differently. Go through them all, take what
works best for you. As a bonus, you can do all of these
exercises at home, possibly at work. They don't require any
special equipment and may give quick neck pain relief even in
as little as thirty seconds. So, let's get started and get
the neck feeling better right now. So, here's a daily neck
exercise that you can do first thing in the morning, in bed,
that's going to focus on stretching the neck,
strengthening it, and also working on bad forward neck
posture. Kind of like an all-in-one exercise. Very easy
to do. Let's start off in bed, flat on our back like this.
First movement, I'm gonna take my elbows, bend them and
they'll degrees. Kind of like creating a field goal position
with this exercise. Let's take our elbows and then drive them
into the bed to create a nice stretch into the chest but also
feel like the shoulder blades are starting to pinch in the
back. I'm going to then lower my elbows down towards my
waist. From here, I'm going to imagine that my neck is a rod
that I'm trying to pull away from my chest. Kinda like
taking my head and pulling it away from my body. Like a very
good traction pulling motion into the neck. We're focus on
that from here I'm going to turn my head in any direction
let's go all the way towards the left kinda like looking
over my left shoulder go as far as you're able to go from here
we're going to tuck the chin down towards the chest so when
we're in this position we should feel a very good stretch
into the chest the upper back and throughout the neck it
usually feels really good hold this position for about fifteen
to 20 seconds. From there, you're just going to relax, take a
breather and then on the next repetition stretch into it to get a better
stretch to get muscle tightness out of the neck. You want to do
this for three to five complete repetitions and then switch to
the other side and repeat. To help strengthen the neck and
work on bad forward neck posture, let's flip over just
like this. We're going to position our body or I should
say our head to the point where the shoulders and the arms are
going to be completely off the edge of that bed. From here,
I'm going to do a neck retraction. It's a very easy
motion. So, I'm just going to start off kind of in a neutral
position and I'm going to draw my chin and head upwards
towards the ceiling. So, I'm not focusing on bending the
back like this but I'm drawing the chin and head up towards
the ceiling as much as we can. You should feel a very good
activation of the muscles right here into the neck. Hold this
position for about ten to fifteen seconds. From there,
you're just going to relax and then you're going to repeat
this up to five times. With each repetition, yourself to
draw the head up even more. If you want to take this one to
the next level, what we can do is incorporate a little bit
more of an angel into this. So, slide off just a little bit
more to the point where our shoulders are going to be off
also. Let's do that neck retraction but this time
around, I'm going to lift my elbows up like this. Create
that field goal position. So, my elbows are at 90° and then, I'm
going to lift my elbows up towards the ceiling while I do
that head retraction. You should feel like the shoulder
blades in the back are pinching. The muscles in the
upper back all the way through the neck are firing. Focus on
that. Hold this for about ten to fifteen seconds. You're just
going to relax and then you're going to repeat this up to five
times. Again, with each repetition, challenge yourself
because it's only going to help strengthen the neck and also
improve neck posture. An overlooked cause of neck pain
is because of a tight chest that draws our shoulders
forward into a rounded posture, tightens the upper back, and
then like abdominal effect goes all the way up into the neck
causing tightness, stiffness, headaches, you name it. Here's
a great daily exercise. It's pretty much going to target all
of that. Very easy to do. Let's start with very good upright
posture. I'm gonna take two fingers, place them on the chin
like this and start with a simple chin or I should say
head retraction. I'm just going to push the head back as much
as I can. We're not going back with it like this. We're just
pushing the chin back until we feel a very good activation of
the muscles into the neck. From there, what I'm going to focus
on is opening up the chest and also the upper back. So, I'm
going to take my arms, straighten them at the elbow
just like this The movement from here is very simple. I'm
going to try to reach out with my arms like this as much as I
can. Starting off in this position, you should feel the
upper back, the shoulder blades starting to open up and also
during this exercise, always keep the chin back into that
retracted stance. So, from here, what I'm going to do is
then, take my arms and slowly go back just like this while
always reaching out. When you do this, you're going to keep
coming back until you start to feel the chest start to open up
and also the shoulder blades and the back start to pinch
together. Challenge to go back as far as you feel comfortable.
Once you hit a very comfortable stretch, let's hold this one
for fifteen to twenty seconds. From there, we're going to take
this to the next level. I'm gonna try to draw the chin back
even further. I'm going to bend the elbows like this so my arms
are creating kinda like a field goal position. I'm gonna wing
the elbows back as much as I can. Get a deep stretch into
the chest and upper back and then from there, what I'm going
to do is just raise my arms up towards the ceiling as much as
I can to the point where the hands are going to overlap.
Let's hold this for a couple seconds and then slowly come back down.
From here, I'm just going to go back into that starting
position. Let's retract the chin just a little bit more on
this next repetition and try to stretch into it even more.
Always challenge yourself as much as you can. The more that
you can activate these muscles, the more relief you will get.
But you want to do this nice and slowly for about three to
five complete repetitions. Next, let's focus on a little
bit more into the top of the shoulder with a muscle called
the upper trapezius that runs right through here up into the
top of the neck. What I'm going to do is focus on one side to
begin with. We're going to take this shoulder, shrug it up
towards that ear. So, in this case, I'm having a lot going on
in my right. I'm taking that right shoulder up towards my
ear. You should feel the muscles on the top of the
shoulder start to activate. From there, I'm gonna take the
hand on the other side, place it on the right side of my head
and then take my left ear towards my left shoulder and
this feels really good. This one, you might get a sudden
pop, crack, or self release into the neck. And if that is
the case, that is quite normal. Just don't try to force this to
pop or crack. Once you feel a very deep stretch into the
neck, we're going to take this one to the next level by then
reaching down with our arms. So, we're taking the shoulder
down now. The more that you go down with the shoulder, the
more intense that stretch is going to get. So, really focus
on feeling that deep great stretch. From here, let's hold
this for fifteen to twenty seconds. You're just going to
relax and then on the next repetition, just try to stretch
into it even more. Three to five complete repetitions and
when you're done on one side, always switch to the other to
keep them both in balance. So, here's one of my favorite daily
neck exercises because not only are we going to get a great
stretch but we can add in a self massage to really target
muscle knots, spasms, trigger points, just general muscle
tightness from the base of the skull all the way down to the
base of the neck. You can do this one standing or seated.
Let's start with very good upright posture. Whatever side
that you're having issues, let's say that I'm having a lot
of muscle tightness, maybe a big muscle not on my right
side. I'm going to turn my head in the opposite direction. So,
I'm going all the way towards my left like looking over my
left shoulder. Get an initial stretch into that side. From
here, what I'm going to do is look down towards the armpit
like 45° down towards the armpit. This will intensify the
stretch and if it is a very deep stretch, you can hold this
for ten to fifteen seconds. From there, just relax, take a
breather, on the next repetition, try to stretch into
it even more but you want to do this for about three to five
complete repetitions. If you want to take this one to the
next level, let's get back into that original stretch but take
our hand, place it on the backside of the head and then
pull the chin down even further towards that armpit and this
will really open up the side of the neck right here. So, only
go to your comfort level. But when you're done on one side, I
do always recommend doing it on the other side to keep them
both in balance. If you are dealing with a lot of muscle
knots, this is how we can add in the self-massage component.
So, let's get back into that stretch. What I'm gonna do from
there is take my thumb and then press into it very lightly.
Build up some tension and then do a nice circular motion
into the muscle that you feel is just really really tight.
Hold this stretch for ten to 15 seconds while you press into it
and self massage that muscle. From there, you're just going
to relax and then simply repeat this three to five times or
until that muscle knot or trigger point starts to release
and you can do this technique pretty much again from the base
of the uh skull all the way down to the base of the neck.
Just target spots that need it the most. So, here's a daily
neck exercise. It's going to focus more on tightness,
tension right at the base of the skull. A spot that usually
will cause tension, headaches. This one is very easy to do.
You can do this when standing or seated. Let's start with
very good upright posture. I'm gonna make a fist just like
this. Thumb is going to be pointed down towards the floor.
Flat edge of the fist is going to go right underneath our chin
just like this. We're going to take our chin, our fist, drive
it down into our chest. Press down as much as you can. The
more that you press down, the more that you're going to feel
an activation of the muscles into the neck. You wanna build
up as much initial tension as you can. From there, I'm going
to take my hand, place it on the back of the head just like
this and I'm going to press down with my chin and then draw
forward with my other hand. When you do this, you're going
to feel a traction or pulling motion into the neck. Pretty
much from the base of the neck all the way to the base of the
skull. Really focus on feeling it into the base of the skull.
Once we hit a very comfortable stretch, let's hold this one
for ten to fifteen seconds. From there, just take a
breather. On the next repetition, challenge yourself
by stretching more into it. Press more down with your chin,
pull more forward with your other hand. Try to do this for
three to five complete repetitions. How we can take
this one to the next level and focus a little bit more off to
one side. Like, let's say that I have just a lot going on on
my right side. I'm going to turn my head in the other
direction while I do this. So, I'm going to make that fist,
put it right underneath my chin. Instead of going straight
down, I'm going to turn my head slightly towards my lap and
then I'm going to press down with my chin and then pull
forward at that point. You'll notice again that it hits it
just a little bit more off to the right side. Go all the way
towards the left. Go all the way towards the right and
whatever spot feels like it hits it just a little bit
better. Throw more repetitions in at that point. Target the
spots and movements that need it the most. If the exercises
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