Many people believe that training the neck muscles is nothing more than wanting to enhance appearance but the truth is, the neck is a huge asset in many kinds of contact sports. Generally, it seems that this important training is over looked because people either do not know about

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Many people believe that training the neck muscles is nothing more than wanting to enhance appearance but the truth is, the neck is a huge asset in many kinds of contact sports. Generally, it seems that this important training is over looked because people either do not know about it or they do not have the proper equipment to carry out the exercises. With some weight plates, a bench, surgical tubing and a towel, you will be able to cover all of the exercises you need to build your neck muscles.

Rotators: You might already know that the 4-way neck machine will not work on the rotators so you will want to go for the manual resistance for this group of muscles. The rotators are not able to be worked with weights but there can be some resistance added. You will do this by applying your hand to your neck while you slowly turn it either to the left or the right.

It is important to make sure that you are easing into this and that you are not using an overload of resistance. Once you have reached your limit of range of motion, you will want to try to slowly increase the resistance and then hold it there for 5-10 seconds.

You will then repeat this process but turn your head in the other direction. Again, make sure that you are going as far as you can and then hold. Complete 3-5 sets in order to make sure that you are really working out this generally overlooked group of muscles.

It’s also a good idea to do this exercise while seated, so your back/upper back muscles are relaxed. We want only to work the extensor group, so try to relax while performing this exercise.

Flexors: As for the flexors, you can use the neck machine if it is available for you to use. If it is not available for you, you can do some simple things and end up with the same exact exercise. Remember, the purpose of this is to tilt the chin forward and down towards the chest.

First, lie on a flat bench, facing up and with your head over the end of the bench. You will want to place a folded towel on your forehead and then gently place a weight plate on the towel. Keep the weight plate in place with your hands and then allow your head to relax and drop downward.

Then, you will want to raise the head slowly as though you are trying to tuck your chin into your chest. You will want to make sure that both of your hands are holding the weight in place, while making sure that you are not helping the muscles perform the movement.

It is important to always start slow with the motions when you are doing neck work. Avoid using extremely heavy weights for the low repetitions because the neck is so incredibly fragile and especially if you are not used to training the neck muscles. Completing several sets of 10 – 15 reps is surely enough to get this group of muscles growing.

There is of course another option for you. You would want to take a piece of surgical tubing, which can be purchase at any medical supply company, and have the loose ends tied into a knot. You now have a loop of tubing.

For working the extensors, you will want to sit up on a bench or a chair and place the tubing on your forehead. You will take the other end up the loop and place it over a doorknob. Allow the head to slowly tilt back and then forward again, as you feel the resistance. When you have finally reached your range of motion limit, you will want to tilt back again and keep going until you have gone through a few sets of ten to fifteen reps.

Once you find that you are ready to increase the level of resistance, you will want to move further away from the anchor point by adding another loop of the tubing or by adding a heavier gauge of tubing. You can wrap a washcloth or towel around the tubing that will rest against your forehead. This will make it much more comfortable for you and it will also keep it from slipping while you go through the range of motion.

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