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Optimal Neck Strength Training

Tips on training the neck muscles

When it comes to strong necks in the iron game, Mike Dayton had one of the most impressive. The former training partner of Arnold and the winner of the 1967 AAU Teenage Mr. America, Dayton developed a strongman act after his stint in bodybuilding. Dayton strengthened his neck muscles to the point that he could hang from a hangman’s noose and survive a six-foot drop! Dayton’s extreme neck training is in sharp contrast to the current trend in strength training.
 
It wasn’t long ago that neck training was a priority for all football players, from high school to the pros. Every weightroom had a plate-loaded neck machine – and for gyms on a tight budget, neck harnesses and old football helmets with weight collars welded to the top. Bulging traps and thick necks were the result. But now, specific neck training has been all but forgotten – perhaps the reason is the emphasis on other tools and training methods, such as core training and plyos.
 
Neglecting the neck is asking for trouble – the most catastrophic injuries in sports are those that occur to the neck; getting hit can result in paralysis. Of course, having proper sport biomechanics and safety equipment is paramount to prevent such injury, as evidenced by the fact that cheerleading is the sport with the highest number of catastrophic neck injuries. But any coach will want to take precautions to reduce the risk of neck injuries among their athletes. And this goes beyond football – athletes in any contact sport should perform neck training.
 
Besides its importance in sports, building a stronger neck can help you counter the unsightly forward-head posture that comes from excessive desk and computer work. It’s a look that pro wrestler Freddie Blassie immortalized in his ’70s- era song “Pencil Neck Geek” (which included these classic lyrics: “Pencil-neck geek, grit eatin’ freak; scum suckin’ pea head with a lousy physique. He’s a one-man, no-gut losing streak. Nothin’ but a pencil-neck geek.”).
 
Seriously, if you suffer from chronic neck pain, it may be a result of simply having weak neck muscles. A study published in 2011 in the journal Manual Therapy examined the necessity of neck training if you suffer from neck pain or suspect you may have a weak neck. Individuals with neck pain were found to have increased co-activation of the two primary neck muscles, the sternocleidomastoid and splenius capitis muscles. Higher levels of co-activation of these muscles were associated with elevated pain levels and immobility in the neck. The researchers concluded that when co-activation continues at high levels in the absence of appropriate structural balance exercises for the neck, neuromuscular control will continue to deteriorate.
 
Neck training facilitates the growth of all the muscles in the upper extremities, and is an important part of achieving structural balance. In fact, improving the strength of the neck extensors can improve the strength of other muscle groups, especially the elbow flexors and triceps. When someone has not make progress in arm strength, the first thing I make them do is insert a set of neck extensors as the A-1 exercise, A-2 and A3 being respectively the elbow flexor and the triceps exerciss.

.Furthermore, when the neck muscles are strong, athletes generally will recover from minor neck injuries faster than athletes who have ignored training this area.
 
With that background, here are a few methods for neck training.
 
4D Neck Training
From a training perspective, the neck muscles have four major functions: flexion, extension, lateral flexion, and rotation. Let’s look at each in turn, and how each movement can be strengthened.
 
Flexion. This refers to the action of tilting your head down and moving your chin to your sternum. The primary muscles responsible for this movement are the longus colli, longus capitis, and infrahyoids. To work these muscles using a neck machine, you would face the machine and rest your forehead in the middle of the head pad. Most neck machines have seats that can be adjusted vertically. The most precise units use a hydraulic cylinder, such as the version offered by Atlantis, while others use a pop-pin mechanism with holes in the vertical shaft. It’s important to be properly aligned in the machine to ensure that you can perform the exercises throughout a full range of motion.

 

When using neck machines, consider that with the three machine exercises described in this article, the neck muscles have an “acceleration strength curve.” This means that with these exercises, the neck muscles can exert greater force when they are fully contracted. Of all the neck machines I have used, I have found that the Atlantis machine has the best strength curve, which is why I purchased one for the Poliquin Strength Institute. For units without this optimal strength curve, you can use lifting chains on the weight peg to provide more appropriate resistance throughout the full range of motion – as the chain is lifted off the floor, the resistance is increased.
 
Without leaning forward, pull your chin toward your sternum as far as possible. Because it’s easy to generate excessive momentum when using this type of machine, thus reducing stress on the muscles, you should perform the exercise slowly, say a tempo of 1211. Note that the reason for the relatively short time under tension for the concentric and eccentric contraction is that the range of motion is extremely short.
 
Extension. Also known as hyperextension, this refers to the action of moving your chin away from your sternum. The muscles primarily responsible for this movement are the splenius capitis, semispinalis capitis, suboccipitals and trapezius. On a neck machine, you would face away from the machine and rest the back of your head on the head pad. Using just your neck muscles and avoiding the tendency to lean backward, tilt your head backward as far as possible. Again, a tempo of 1211 would be appropriate.
 
Try shoulder shrugs for the trapezius, a triangle-shaped back muscle that starts in the middle of the back and fans out to the top of the shoulder. Shoulder shrugs are excellent for isolating this muscle action – as are the movements used in the pulling phases of the snatch and clean. As a result, many Olympic lifters have tremendous trapezius development. One who comes to mind is Russia’s Anatoly Pisarenko, a weightlifter who clean and jerked 584 pounds and reportedly did a 617-pound clean in training.
 
For the shoulder shrugs, Atlantis makes a great shoulder shrug machine (which also can be used for deadlifts). Hex bar and trap bar shoulder shrugs are also valuable; with these two exercises the hands can be positioned at the side, as opposed to a straight bar, where the weight is out front. Having your hands at your sides provides a more direct line of pull, enabling you to use more weight and thereby increase the training effect.
 
Lateral Flexion. Lateral flexion refers to the action of cocking your head to the side. The primary muscles used for this action are the scalenes. With a neck machine, you would sit on the machine sideways and place the side of your head on the head pad. Without tilting your upper body, flex your neck, moving your ear close to your shoulder. Use a 1211 tempo.
 
Rotation. This refers to the action of twisting your head side-to-side. The primary muscles that perform this action are the splenius capitis, sternocleidomastoid, levator scapula, and suboccipital. There are very few neck machines on the market I like, as it is difficult to get the head pad to fit securely. Arthur Jones made a nice one as part of his medical line, but I believe the price tag was about $75,000. Probably the best way to perform rotation is with manual resistance.
 
As it is very difficult for a trainer to apply the appropriate resistance, and because these muscles are relatively weak, you can often get a good workout with manual resistance. Manual resistance neck training involves applying resistance with the hands to the head. Because it would take a skilled training partner to safely perform this method, it would be best to perform it by yourself. With those precautions, here’s how to do it.
 
Sit down and turn your head to the side, trying to look over your shoulder. Using your opposite hand and keeping your shoulders square, apply gentle pressure to your chin and slowly turn your head toward the other shoulder. Switch hands and repeat for the other side. A tempo of 1211 will also work on this exercise.
 
Sets, Reps and a Word about Neck Bridging

Although neck bridging is popular with wrestlers, it may be too intense for beginners, even when performed without additional resistance (such as by holding a weight plate on your waist during the supine version of this exercise). Also, expert instruction is needed to perform these exercises properly, and the potential for injury from neck bridging is, in my opinion, too high to take the risk.
 
Regarding sets and reps, you need to know that recovery from neck training takes about 72 hours, with as many as seven days for those with especially weak or imbalanced neck muscles – and possibly for women.In one study published in Physical Therapy in Sport in 2010, participants completed three exercises (neck extension, flexion and rotation) for 3 sets of 8 repetitions, each at 60 to 70 percent of their 1RM. The men in the study regained pre-training strength levels within three days after the workout, while it took most of the women as many as seven days to recover. Further, the participants had greater strength levels by the seventh day after training, indicating the benefits of one to two workouts a week.
 
Developing your neck will help you to improve overall strength and to develop a more rugged physique – along with helping to prevent chronic neck pain. You can get these benefits relatively quickly by doing specialized neck training twice a week, working the four major functions of the neck. It’s a great investment.