By Samantha Traylor, DC, FIAMA, chiropractor and acupuncturist with Lumin SpineCARE
Neck pain is a common problem, made even more prevalent in our society due to texting and computer usage. When texting or using a computer, most people look down and hunch their shoulders as they focus on what they’re writing. Although it seems like a small move, this can put a tremendous strain on your neck, shoulder and upper back muscles. Luckily, there are some very simple things you can do to help decrease your pain and discomfort. Here are five exercises that I often recommend to help relive neck pain and stiffness:
Supermans: Start by lying on your stomach with your arms straight out in front of you and legs straight out behind you. Lift one arm and the opposite leg up about an inch or two and then switch to the other side. Do this10 times on each side, at three seconds a piece. Rest your head on a towel facedown, so you don’t strain your neck trying to keep your head up.
Scapular Retraction Neck Flexion: You can do this exercise while sitting or standing. Take an elastic band – like a TheraBand, which you can find in most sporting goods stores – and hold it in both hands and stretch it in front of your chest. When you feel resistance, squeeze your shoulder blades together and hold. This increases the resistance. While you’re squeezing, move your head up and down like you’re saying “yes” to someone. Repeat 10 times.
Standing Rows: You will need either an elastic band or a cable system to perform this exercise. Stand with your feet shoulder width apart and arms straight out in front of you. Start with a band in each hand and make sure you have the same tension in each one. This exercise is a little like rowing a boat. You just pull straight back, keeping your arms parallel with the floor and squeeze your shoulder blades together. Perform this movement 30 times, and hold for three seconds a piece.
Active Cervical Range of Motion and Stretching: Keep your neck moving. Tilt your head to the right and then the left and repeat three times. Then roll your neck from the right toward your chest and then toward the left, etc. If you feel more stiffness on one of the movements, then you’ll want to try and stretch this area by holding the motion for 10 seconds and going as far as you can with the movement, feeling a stretch in the muscles. This will increase blood flow to the cervical spine (your neck), which should decrease discomfort.
Towel Exercise: This last exercise is the easiest. Your neck should have a curve that faces forward like the letter “C.” However, as a society today, most of us have a straight curve or a reversing curve in our neck. This can be very harmful and painful to your entire spine and spinal cord. This neck exercise is going to help get your curve back to the normal “C” shape. First, roll up a bathroom hand towel (a full size towel is too big). Roll it up, so that it’s round and about six to seven inches thick. Then lie flat on your back with your knees bent and stick the roll under your neck. Stay in this position for 15 minutes a day. Do not fall asleep on it or use it longer than 15 minutes a day or it could cause a lot of soreness and pain. If you feel that the hand towel is too thick or it’s extremely uncomfortable, then you can use a wash cloth to start with and move up to a hand towel as your body gets used to the exercise.
If you haven’t worked out your neck muscles in a while, you can expect some soreness. This is good – it means the muscles are working. If you have a lot of soreness, apply heat to the affected area for 20 minutes on and then an hour-and-a-half off. If it persists or you experience intense pain, stop the exercises and contact your doctor.