More and more employees throughout the world spend their days in front of a computer. This can lead to health problems due to poor posture and overuse of muscles in the hands and wrist. The neck can also fall victim to computer use. As your head and eyes remain focused on a fixed computer screen, the neck muscles can become tense and cramped. Frequent neck exercises throughout the day can significantly improve these potential ailments.
Sideways Stretches
Sideways neck stretches allow you to flex muscles that may become rigid after hours of sitting with your head pointed straight ahead. These exercises begin with your head positioned so your nose points straight ahead, parallel to the floor. As you turn your head slowly to the right shoulder, the left neck muscles are stretched. The neck should always remain straight during the turn. As with most neck exercises, the stretching movements should be slow and remain comfortable. Over-stretching, where the neck is forced beyond your comfort zone, can be damaging. This exercise is repeated back and forth five times over both shoulders, holding the stretch for half a minute on each side.
Vertical Stretches
Vertical stretches help to flex neck muscles that do not get frequent use when working at a computer. As you lift the chin slowly toward the ceiling, you can feel the stretch on the front of your neck. In any neck exercise, never force the head's motion beyond what feels relaxed. Hold your head pointed toward the ceiling for up to 30 seconds, then return to the starting position. This slow vertical movement offers a relaxed stimulation to muscles that might otherwise become rigid. Also move the head down by lowering the chin toward the chest. This exercise stretches the back of your neck. By slowly alternating these up-and-down stretches, you can relieve tension and stiffness resulting from computer posture.
Circular Rotations
The sideways and vertical neck stretches can be combined in a circular exercise. This is often done after the prior two stretches are completed individually. You begin by lifting the chin toward the ceiling. This is the same starting motion of the vertical stretching exercise. Then, you twist the head slowly to the right and rotate down until it arrives at the right-facing position straight across the right shoulder. This motion involves all the intermediate muscles between the vertical and horizontal positions. You continue the rotation until the chin is near the chest. This stimulates many muscles in the neck that might be in danger of stiffness from extended computer use. The rotation is continued to complete a full circle. For best results, this circle stretch should be repeated five times in both directions.
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