Neck pain relief exercises

Neck pain can stop any daily activities in their tracks. Whether you have just slept wrong or had a fall, neck pain can be debilitating and cause all kinds of problems with daily life. If neck pain persists, it can also make you feel very low as you can’t do the things you want to do. However, hopefully, the neck pain exercises mentioned below can help to ease your neck pain.

Now, before we get to the neck pain exercises, we want to point out that these are not designed to replace proper treatment of neck conditions. If you have a serious neck condition, or think you may have one, do get it checked. If you use these neck exercises without getting your neck seen to beforehand, you may cause more damage and be in more pain. If you have neck pain and would like our help treating it, please get in touch using the contact form further down on this page.

Some of the stretches below may be quite advanced for people with no yoga or stretching experience. However, there are some simple stretches that can help everyone below and the better you get at the basic ones, the better you’ll understand the more advanced ones. Only try the more advanced stretches below when you feel confident that you can do them successfully. Otherwise, you may injure your neck further. So, here are six of the best neck pain exercises to do to relieve the pain from a sore neck.

The best neck pain relief exercises

Seated neck release

This fantastic little stretch targets the sides of your neck and works a dream.

To start, sit on the floor or in a chair with your feet flat to the floor, whichever is more comfortable. Relax your right hand by your side, you won’t need it just yet. Place your left hand on top of your head and tilt your head to the left slowly. Apply gentle pressure with your left hand to increase the stretch. To increase the stretch further, you can hold onto to the chair or your right knee. Hold this for 30 seconds and lift your head slowly and repeat on the right side of your neck.

Behind the back neck stretch

This is the perfect stretch to do anywhere, even at work. This is great for side of the neck pain from sitting at a desk all day, for example.

To start, stand up with your feet hip-width apart and your arms by your sides. Put both hands behind your back and grab your left wrist with your right hand. Use your right hand to straighten your left arm and pull it away from you a little bit. To increase the stretch, lower your right ear towards your right shoulder. Hold this for 30 seconds and then switch sides.

Seated clasping neck stretch

Sit comfortably, either in a chair or on the floor. Bring both hands to the back of your head. Now with your spine extended, ground your hips firmly into the floor or chair. From here, begin to press your hands down gently towards your thighs, tucking your chin to your chest as you go. For a more intense stretch, use the heels of your hands to pull your head away from your shoulders. Hold this for 30 seconds and then lift your head slowly and release your hands.

Note: If you have a history of spinal disc problems in your neck, avoid this stretch.

Grounded tip over tuck

This relaxing stretch can not only help your neck. Thanks to the position of this stretch, it will also help your shoulders and can help to relieve drowsiness and headaches so it’s a great one to keep in your back pocket and pull out in emergencies!

You will need to know the yoga pose called “child’s pose” for this one. To begin, get into child’s pose with your shins and head on the floor. Stay here for a few moments, it’s a lovely pose so you might as well enjoy that one too. When you’re ready, interlace your fingers behind your back and press your hands together if you can. Lift your hands as high as possible. Inhale (this shifts your weight forward) and lift your hips off your heels. Stay here for ten seconds and then lift your hips again while trying to get your hands to go as far over your head as possible. Repeat this five times then release and return to Child’s pose.

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The seated heart opener

This stretch will help your chest, shoulders and the front of your neck. Start by sitting on your heels, lean back and place your palms on the floor behind you with your fingertips facing away from you.  Press your hands firmly into the floor, arch your back and push your hips into your heels. To increase the stretch, lean your head backwards. This will stretch your throat, chest and front of your neck more. Stay like this for 30 seconds and then lift your head and return to normal.

The bridge

This is a classic yoga pose that is perfect for beginners because it allows you to control the amount you stretch the back of your neck easily. You can stretch your neck more or less depending on how high your hips are off the floor.

To start, lay flat on your back with your arms along your side. Bend your knees and place your feet flat to the floor. Then, begin walking your feet towards your bum, keeping them about hip-width apart. With your feet and palms pressed firmly on the floor, lift your hips off of the floor. Stay there and rock your weight from side to side, this allows you to bring your shoulder blades closer together. Stay in this position for 30 seconds while continuing to raise your hips. To release, gently lower your bum to the floor and then stretch your lower back by bringing your knees up to your chest.

We hope these neck pain relief exercises can help you manage your neck pain. If you’ve already tried these stretches without success and would like our help treating your neck pain, please get in touch. We use the latest treatments to treat all kinds of neck and back pain and can get you back to full health in no time.

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