Neck stretches to relieve pain

Minor neck problems are something that most of the people complain about at some point of their lives. For most of us, neck problems are something that keeps reoccurring from time to time.

Neck problems causes

Neck problems are especially common in people who work in the office and spend long hours in the office chair in front of their computers. If their monitor isn’t placed at the appropriate height, long working hours will definitely cause a lot of wear and tear. Neck problems and injuries also occur during sports activities, while doing a housework or spending a lot of time in bad posture (while reading a book or preparing an exam, for example). Neck pain is often described as discomfort in the muscles and nerves of the neck that may sometimes radiate to the nearby areas such as shoulders, head and upper arms. People may also find it difficult to move the neck, especially to one side. However, a set of simple stretching exercises may help to prevent and alleviate stiffness in the neck. Here is how to relieve the pain.

Neck stretch

This simple exercise stretches the neck in all six natural ranges of motion. It is great for morning stretching routine, but it works equally good to release the pain from stiff muscles. As already mentioned, there are six ranges of motion for the neck. To begin stretching in all directions, the exerciser should slowly bend the neck and take the chin down to chest. Then, the exerciser lowers the head back until it feels good. After that, the head goes back to the starting position and the right ear lowers towards the right shoulder. This stretch is repeated on the other side. To finish, the exerciser turns the head to the right, while trying to align the chin with right shoulder. The exercise is repeated on the left side, too. Each of the stretching positions is held for up to 15 seconds

Shoulder shrugs

This exercise works great for both neck and the shoulders. It is very simple and performed by shrugging the shoulders to the ears and holding the position tightly for about 3 seconds. In this position, the shoulders rotate backwards before the exerciser relaxes the muscles and returns to the starting position. It is advised to repeat the stretch 10 times.

Upper back stretch

This exercise relaxes the neck and the upper part of the back. It is performed by stretching the arms in front of the body and rotating hands until the palms are faced away one from another. In this position, the upper body bends over while the head remains relaxed. The position is held up to 15 seconds.