Does this sound familiar? You’re at your desk working away at your computer. Your shoulders are hiked up towards your ears. Your chin is jutting out towards the computer screen. By the end of the day you are reaching to massage the back and sides of your poor aching neck.
These three stretches are little miracle workers for releasing tension in the neck. They are my go-to when I literally have a pain in the neck or feel a headache coming on. As a bonus they take less than 5 minutes to do. Remember: slow and steady wins the race so always work gently and mindfully. In these stretches less is more!
Back of the Neck: Interlace the hands at the back of the head. Allow the chin to drop towards the chest until a stretch is felt at the back of the neck. With the interlaced hands providing gentle resistance lightly press the back of the head into the interlaced hands for 10 seconds. It’s as if you were trying to return the head to center but the hands prevent you. Let that go and drop the chin any closer to the chest, until a stretch is felt at the back of the neck once again. As before gently lift the head into the interlaced hands for 10 seconds. Repeat this process 1-2 more times.
Side of the Neck: Lean the right ear towards the right shoulder. Reach overhead with the right hand and rest it on the left cheek. With your hand, gently press the right ear to the right shoulder until a slight stretch is felt on the left side of the neck. Reach the left fingertips towards the floor. With the right hand providing gentle resistance lightly lift your head into your hand for 10 seconds. It’s as if you were trying to return the head to center but the hand prevents you. Let that go and drop the right ear any closer to its shoulder, until a stretch is felt on the left side of the neck once again. As before gently lift the head into the hand. Repeat 1-2 more times and then switch sides.
Front of the Neck: Rotate your chin towards the right shoulder until you feel a slight stretch towards the left side of the neck. Rest your left hand on your left cheek. With the left hand providing gentle resistance lightly rotate the cheek into the hand for 10 seconds. It’s as if you were trying to rotate the chin back to center but the hand prevents you from moving the head. Let that go and rotate the chin any further towards the right, until a stretch is felt on the left side of the neck once again. As before gently rotate the cheek into the hand. Repeat 1-2 more times and then switch sides.
