Neck Nods

While browsing the web for body-weight exercises I came across a page at Justin's Guide to Taekwon-Do that listed several exercises and one caught my attention. The sixth one in the list is Neck Nods:

"Here's an old boxer's trick to help build neck strength and endurance. The old-timers swear this will help you take a punch..give it a try. Lie flat on your back with legs straight, and hands at your side. Now 'nod' your head until your chin touches your upper chest. Return your head to the mat, and repeat continuously. Try to do 50 of these and see how you feel. For a harder challenge, nod for 50 reps, and then hold your head in the "up position" and begin turning your head from left to right at a slow but steady rate. Do these for 50. When you can nod for 100 you're getting some strength."

Now, I am not planning on taking any punches any time soon (though sometimes its good to be ready for the unexpected!), but the technique sounds like it would help my neck feel better after a long hard day of staring at the computer. So I go about trying to research it. Shortly I find an article on ThePilatesLounge.com about this very situation: Why Sitting at Your Computer Gives You 'The Humped Back' Syndrome. Fancy that, its just as I suspected! And neck nods are even suggested to ease the condition. Now, I have only taken a Pilates class or two, and I know that it has a lot to offer. Unfortunately it usually comes with a cost in dollars and scheduling. Equipment such as mats are usually advised as well. So for now, let's just take the free, no equipment, do anytime, anywhere Neck Nods.

As I continue browsing search results I come across another description of neck nods from the mailing list Supertraining@yahoogroups.com, where user Yehoshua Zohar offers:

"On another day I do neck nods. Lay on a bench with you head extended over the end and raise. Then turn your head to the right and lift your ear to your shoulder. Ditto to the left. Then do circles in both directions. Finally turn over on your stomach and raise your head. Go for high reps."

While one could argue that this one requires a bench, I would argue that you could use any flat object like a bed, and hang your head off the end. Worst-case scenario, do it on the floor anyway. But what I really like about this excerpt is that it mentions turning over on your stomach and repeating. That helps work the muscles on the other side of the neck. That is so often forgotten about. Just like with sit-ups and crunches, you can do them all day long and have great abs, but what about the corresponding muscles in the back? They need exercise too! I will try to find some good ones for that in a later post. Not exercising the back with the abs or both sides of the neck together can lead to the kind of imbalance that produces pain in the neck and back. Suffice it to say that I feel it is very important to exercise both sides, in this case doing neck nods on your back and on your stomach so that all your neck muscles get exercise.