Neck pain due to muscle tightness can radiate into the head and present as headaches. These headaches usually happen in the middle or end of the day after the neck muscles have been under tension for a long time.
Although the incidence of such headaches is low – about 4% of all headaches, these are becoming more and more common due to the activities we do now as compared to a decade or so ago.
20-70% of adults suffer from some kind of neck pain that interferes with their daily routine.
The most common cause of neck pain is muscle strain that happens due to repetitive stress and maintaining the same position for too long.
No matter the reason for your neck tightness and headaches, it negatively affects your life. The good news is that the fix is simple and you can do it yourself at home.
In this article, we’ll show you seven exercises that’ll help you relieve tension in your neck muscles and get rid of headaches.
The best part? You don’t need any special equipment or too much time to do these.
What Causes Muscular Tightness in the Neck?
Our neck has a few small muscles instead of one large one as we have in our thighs or the back. Some of these muscles are in the back of the neck while others are towards the front.
Just like other regions of the body, the neck muscles function the best when they work together and the load is evenly distributed.
Putting your muscles under stress or tension causes tightness. This stress could be from changes in posture such as forward head posture, staying in one position for too long, osteoporotic changes in the neck and so on. (Reference)
Forward head posture is a common condition amongst people of all ages these days. Normally, your ears should be directly above the shoulders.
But in this condition, your ears move forward and don’t align with the shoulders.
It causes the muscles in the front of the neck to become tight and the muscles in the back of the neck to elongate (loosen).
This posture increases the weight of the head. And the muscle imbalance puts the load of the head on only some muscles instead of all, thus causing pain and headaches.
Fun fact: The more forward your head moves, the more it weighs and the more load the neck muscles have to carry.
An extra weight of 10lb is added for every inch that your head advances. If your head weighs 12lb in the perfect anatomical position (ears vertically in-line with the shoulders), then it’ll weigh about 42lb if you take your head about 3 inches forward.
The same thing happens when you bend your head down – as you are right now while looking at your phone.
Watch this video to learn more about it.
Staying in one position for too long can strain the muscles and ligaments that are supporting your neck.
Over time, their capacity to manage the load decreases and micro-injuries become one big injury that causes pain.
In osteoporosis of the neck, the changes in the vertebrae and intervertebral disks change the curvature of the spine. That puts muscles under excessive load to hold the head upright. It leads to pain in the neck, head, and even down the shoulders in some cases. (Reference)
Simple Exercises to Relieve Tension in the Neck Muscles and Headaches
The neck exercises we’ll discuss in this section are easy to follow and you can do these yourself.
These will help you improve muscle flexibility, increase range of motion, balance muscle power in the front and the back of the neck to distribute the load evenly, and correct posture.
Maintaining correct form while doing exercises is crucial.
Let’s get started.
1. Increase Awareness of Muscle Tension
This isn’t a traditional exercise to get rid of muscle tension.
It’s a way to help you understand what active vs relaxed muscles feel like so you can keep relaxing your neck throughout the day – thus reducing overall tension.
To start, sit in a comfortable position. Slowly raise one shoulder towards the ear and hold it there for 10-15 seconds.
Very quickly, you’ll start to ‘feel’ the muscles becoming stiffer. Now relax the muscles by bringing the shoulder down to its normal position.
The way your neck muscles feel now is how relaxed muscles should feel.
Do this exercise a few times, in different settings such as while sitting on your desk, while driving, while watching Netflix etc., so you can become aware of the way your muscles should feel at rest.
Then, pay attention to your muscles throughout the day and actively relax your neck and shoulders whenever you feel that your muscles are getting tense.
Breaking the habit of tensing your shoulders will help you get rid of neck muscle tightness in the long run.
We unconsciously tend to tense up when we’re driving, typing on a computer, sitting without back support, holding objects in our hands, and during other mundane activities.
The best way to get rid of neck muscle tightness is to treat it at its root.
2. Gentle Neck Stretches Throughout the Day
Bend your neck to the side as if you were trying to bring your ear to your shoulder. Hold it for 5-10 seconds. Apply pressure with your hand if you need to.
Similarly, slowly rotate your neck from side to side as if you were gesturing ‘no’. Hold it at the end range for 5-10 seconds.
Now move your neck up and down as if you were nodding ‘yes’.
To stretch the biggest muscle in the front of your neck (sternocleidomastoid SCM): Look up. Rotate your head to the side. Move your head back. Hold for 5-10 seconds. Return to the starting position. Do the same for the other side.
Important: only move your neck to the point that isn’t painful to maintain. Make sure to stop if there’s any dizziness.
3. Deep Tissue Massage on the Back of the Neck
Tip: if your neck muscles feel stiff, apply a heating pad wrapped in a towel to the back of your neck for 10 minutes. This should relax the muscles.
Lie down on the floor or on a yoga mat. Take a golf ball or something of similar size. Put it underneath your neck and drop the weight of your neck on it.
Move it around to find a tight spot. You’ll know you’re in the right place if you feel relief when you massage the area with the golf ball.
The golf ball technique is excellent to relieve pain at the base of your skull and target small segments.
Slight discomfort is ok especially if you’re doing it for the first time. Intense pain isn’t ok so stop this massage if it hurts too much or makes you dizzy.
You can do this massage while sitting as well by using your fingers to press down on tight spots.
These tight spots are often referred to as trigger points in physical therapy.
If you have tight muscles or a bunch of triggers, then one massage session isn’t going to relieve your neck pain. It’ll make your muscles a bit looser but you’ll have to do it for a couple of days to see real results.
4. Exercise to Give Traction to Neck Vertebrae
Lie down on a bed or the floor. Put a water bottle or a soup can under your neck.
Let your head fall back as long as it’s comfortable.
Next, hook your hands under your ears and move your head away from your body. This will give traction to the neck vertebrae and muscles and provide some pain relief.
Alternatively, you can let your head hang over the edge of the bed, hook your hands in the same potions and push your head away from the body.
5. Loosen Your Shoulders
The muscles between your neck and shoulders take on most of the stress of bad posture.
Doing shoulder rolls to release tension here can help your neck muscles loosen up as well.
Sit comfortably in a chair or on the floor. Straighten your back and slowly rotate your shoulders in circles. Do this for 20-30 seconds as long as it’s comfortable.
6. Chin Tuck-In for Deep Posterior Neck Muscles
Lie down on a comfortable surface. You can either put a small towel under your head or lie down without a pillow.
Push your chin into the neck or press the back of your head into the ground. (It’s the same activity as you would do to show your double chin.)
This activity increases the range of motion of the neck by opening up the various joints while also stretching the deep posterior muscles which are often tight.
Make sure not to move your chin as if you were looking down. Keep the focus on driving the back of your head into the ground.
7. Self-Mobilize Your Neck Vertebrae
Sit comfortably. Put a folded towel around your neck such that you can hold on to both its ends.
Slowly move your neck to look up towards the ceiling. Pull the ends of the towel in the forward direction while your head moves back.
You can fold the towel to make it thinner and target different levels of the neck. Feel free to spend more time where it feels most comfortable.
Your neck has seven small bones (vertebrae) which all have joints between them. Some areas might be stiffer than others. This exercise should help you mobilize each segment safely, increase your range of motion, and take some stress off the muscles.
Pay Attention to Your Upper Back
Our body works as one unit. The neck muscles are affected by the surrounding areas, particularly the upper back. So it’s wise to include it when working on the muscles in the neck.
You can read this article on thoracic mobility to learn about effective upper back stretches you can try at home.
Long Term Prevention of Neck Muscle Tightness and Related Headaches
Doing simple exercises by yourself to relieve neck muscle tightness and headaches is great – but it isn’t a long-term solution.
You need to identify the root cause of your pain and fix that.
Posture correction is a great start since a majority of neck tightness issues emerge from posture-related causes.
If you usually sit with a forward head posture, then you’ll have to strengthen the muscles in the back of your neck while stretching the ones in the front. The exercises we’ve discussed above should help you fix your posture if you do them consistently.
You can also consult a physiotherapist for posture assessment and ask them to tell you which muscles need stretching and which ones need strengthening.
Doing strengthening exercises to balance the muscles on all sides of the neck is also helpful. Remember to always warm up by doing gentle stretches before you begin these.
Sit comfortably in a chair. Try to rotate your head towards the right while resisting it for 3-5 seconds.
You can use a resistance band or your hand for resistance. Similarly, rotate your neck to the left, bend it on both sides, and try to look up and down while resisting each movement.
This exercise should help you build strength in all neck areas and correct any muscle imbalances. Make sure to only move your neck, not your shoulders or upper back.
The Takeaway
To see real results, you need to first identify the activity that’s causing your neck pain and headaches.
It could be that you’re looking at your phone with your head bent down a lot or have your shoulders shrugged up while typing on a keyboard.
A physiotherapist can help with determining the cause and its impact on the muscles since we’re specialists in doing just that.
Remember that muscle tightness doesn’t happen overnight. So it’s not going to be fixed in just one session.
You have to stay consistent with your exercises. Repeat these daily and you’ll notice a reduction in the intensity and frequency of your headaches – if muscle tightness is truly the cause in your case.
Contact us if you need help in treating neck muscle tightness or other issues.
Disclaimer: This article is for informative purposes only. We provide well-researched and authentic information. Do not consider this personalized health advice. Please contact a licensed healthcare professional for medical issues and health concerns.