Neck pain and stiffness is an extremely common problem that we see regularly at our clinics. So we thought it would be a good idea to share some of our advice with all of you, so that you can better self manage when things flare up.
The type of neck pain this addresses is as follows:
- Pain is local to the neck (this may include the top of the back or between your shoulder blades)
- No pain radiating down the arm
- No pins and needles, numbness or muscle weakness
- No severe incident causing the pain (eg whiplash from a car accident should not be managed without a professional opinion)
- No dizzyness, double vision, drop attacks, trouble speaking or swallowing.
The Effective Three:
Roughly 90% of neck pain patients will leav
e the clinic with one of these three exercises. The reason being, they are simple, and they work!
If you can understand why you would do each exercise then you are well on your way to self managing your neck stiffness.
You can download our exercise sheet here.
Exercise 1:Chin Tuck + Over Pressure
The first exercise targets stiffness in the top few joints of your neck. It is important to make sure this area moves well, before progressing on to exercises two and three.
Watch the how to video here:
Or follow these instructions:
Start by tucking your chin in (think double chin).
Use the webspace of you thumb and index finger to push your neck into as much chin tuck as possible. Hold for roughly 2 seconds.
You should feel a stretch on the top of your neck.
Repeat this ten times, as often as possible (aim for more than 5x a day)
Exercise 2: Chick Tuck + Rotate
If exercise 1 is now relatively pain free and not overly stiff, then add this second exercise to your routine. The goal of the exercise is to mobilise the middle part of your neck, to improve your rotation in one direction. If you can rotate your head in both directions without stiffness or pain, then move on to exercise 3.
Watch the how to video here:
Or follow these instructions:
Tuck your chin as per exercise 1, then rotate your neck as far as possible in the direction of stiffness. Making sure you do not lose the chin tuck.
At the end of your rotation range, use your hand on your cheek to add a comfortable overpressure. This exercise can create a feeling of tightness at any level of your neck.
Repeat this ten times, as often as possible (aim for more than 5x a day). You can perform the exercise in one or both directions.
Exercise 3: Chin Tuck + Extend
The final exercise is to target the lowest joints in your neck and highest parts of your upper back. To progress to this exercise you should have no discomfort with exercise 1, and either no restriction, or only a small restriction into rotation.
Watch the how to video here:
Or follow these instructions:
First you should grab the muscles on top of each shoulder lightly with your hands, pulling the skin forwards. This will make the exercise more comfortable.
Next perform a normal chin tuck. Then look up towards the ceiling until you feel the bottom of your neck jam tight. Then relax your chin tuck allowing your head to drop all the way backwards as far as possible.
At the end of range do a few mini rotations each way to help get to end range, then return to the starting position.
Repeat this ten times, as often as possible (aim for more than 5x a day).
