The Overlooked Importance of Neck Flexibility in Sports

Many of today's athletes spend more time doing sport specific training. As the parent of an athlete or one yourself you know the time put into the gym, on the field and in the weight room in the constant pursuit of excellence in sport. In modern high school athletics it is common for the team to be required to lift together not only for better performance but for injury prevention as well. The need for proper injury prevention techniques is even greater in sports with high contact like football, boxing, hockey and wrestling. Although coaches are making great efforts in helping their athletes to stay fit and healthy for competition many training programs overlook a vital part of the human anatomy - the neck.

According to the American Academy of Pediatrics injuries in sports most often "occur to the ligaments, tendons and muscles." Although protective padding is often designed to prevent head injuries and broken bones "Most frequent sports injuries are sprains (injuries to ligaments) and strains (injuries to muscles), caused when an abnormal stress is placed on tendons, joints, bones and muscle." The muscles of the neck often go untrained leading to weak muscles, ligaments and tendons in the area. By incorporating stretching into the training plan of an athlete one can help to reduce the likelihood of injury to the neck. Here are some stretches you should incorporate in your training for your neck.

Start out with a light warm up. Jog, jump rope or do jumping jacks for 5 minutes to get the blood flowing through your body. A cold muscle is difficult to stretch and attempting to stretch a muscle that has not been properly warmed up could lead to injury. Next do some light neck rolls to begin to loosen the muscles of the next. Now you are ready to begin your stretches.

Stand or sit up strait and relaxed. Relax your shoulders and tilt your head to the right. Using your right hand apply light pressure to pull your neck into a good stretch. You should not feel any pain and do not raise your left shoulder. Hold this for 20 seconds and switch to the left side. Stretch both sides for 20 seconds 3 times. This will stretch both your sternocleidomastoid and your splenius muscles.

After your side stretches come back to your strait and relaxed position. Relax your head forward and try to touch your chin to your chest. Again you should not feel any pain and do not force your head to your chest. Hold this stretch for 20 seconds. This stretch works your splenius muscle running along the back of your neck.

Next tilt your head back as far as it will go and relax while you stare at the ceiling. There should be no pressure applied to this stretch and you should not feel any pain. After holding for 20 seconds tilt your head forward to complete the previous stretch a second time and then repeat this stretch. It is also helpful to slightly tilt your head to each side while it is tilted back to get a full stretch.

The final stretch is the rotation stretch for your sternocleidomastoid which is the muscle that pops out on both sides in front when you flex your neck. From your strait and relaxed rotate your head so that you are looking to your right. You may apply very light pressure to hold this stretch for 20 seconds. Then perform the stretch to your left side. As always you should not feel any pain while completing your stretch. Repeat both sides again.

Armed with this new information and this simple yet effective neck stretching workout you can begin to incorporate stretches into the workout of your child, your team or even yourself. Remember to never jerk or bounce a stretch and that if you do feel pain to rest and come back to it later. If you feel recurring pain that seems at a restricted range of movement see your doctor to make sure you do not already have a neck injury. As always in sports remember to have fun and be safe.