Dealing With A Pain In The Neck Part 2

Please refer to the following blog article for part 1 of this series: Dealing with A Pain in the Neck.  

To review briefly, the best way to see if your deep neck flexors fatigue is to try and lift your head off the ground when you are lying down.  Just tuck your chin in to your chest and lift your head off the ground, and then attempt to hold it there for 10 seconds.  If the neck begins shaking, or your chin is unable to stay tucked in, then your deep flexor muscles are fatigued and need to be addresses.

 Begin your exercise program by doing simple chin tucks while sitting or standing. Simply tucking your chin in and holding it until you fatigue will help reactivate these muscles. You can start with 12 repetitions of this exercise, working your way up to three sets of 12 repetitions each.  Be sure to be rest several minutes between each set. 

 Once you get comfortable with basic sitting/standing chin tucks, you can try doing the exercise lying down. The goal is to be able to do it 12 times, holding each one until you fatigue. The next goal is to work your way up to three sets of 20 repetitions, with rest between each set.  Then work your way to three sets of 15 repetitions and then three sets of 20 repetitions.  Remember, this is a marathon, not a sprint. The goal is to increase the endurance of your muscles rather than their strength.  Your neck carries the weight of your head all day.  It was not designed to lift trains or buses!

Remember, the neck muscles are like any other muscle in our body. With long-term pain or injury, the muscles get weak and tired quicker. By first strengthening the weak muscles and increasing their endurance, you will be prepared to progress to more challenging strengthening exercises. As research and guideline conclude, combining this with your chiropractic care will lead to the best outcomes and improvement in your chronic neck pain.

 Credits: Jasper Sidhu, DC, March 2010 toyourhealth.com