Yoga, Neck and Upper Back Exercises

Now a day’s neck and shoulders tension is also a very common and major problem, Sometimes this stiffness and tension comes about from spending too much time working at a computer, or in a work environment where one is bending over, or in some way building up tension.

These are few exercises which is helpful to improve neck and shoulder stiffness.

Bend your head forward, chin on chest, and then back to original position.
Bend to the right, and then back to the original position.
Bend backward, then back to the original position.
Bend to the left, and then back to the original position.
Bend forward, chin on chest, move from right to the left, then move from left to right.

Caution

Anyone with a weak neck or injuries to their neck should be very cautious and when in doubt, please consult with your doctor before carrying out any of these exercises.

If you suffer from stiffness in your neck, shoulders or upper back, then these yoga exercises may be a good way to remove your stiffness.

The whole idea to bring in looseness to the area of the neck and upper back, and also to increase your sensitivity to feeling and becoming aware of how these areas feel throughout the day. So you should ideally practice these movements 2 to 4 times each day. That will prevent the tension from building up.
How you do these exercises is most important.

These yoga exercises should be practiced
Slowly
With awareness
Ideally synchronized with the breath
Gently
Sensitively focusing inwards trying to detect what you can feel
A few times of a day if one wants to remove pain and stiffness
Even after the pain goes

Shoulder rotation

Relaxed your arm and no tension in arms and then slowly move both shoulders in rotations, inhaling move shoulders up and back, exhale as they move down and then start to move forwards.

Moving shoulders forwards and back

Stand again straight, relaxed, arms down. Try not to bring tension into any part of body but move shoulders forward as if they were moving in front of your chest and coming towards each other as you exhale, then inhale broaden shoulders and bring back behind you again if moving together, opening in the chest, inhaling.do this exercise for few times.

Upper Back Exercise

Upper back and neck problem like stiffness and pain are common complaints which are becoming more prevalent in physical therapy offices because of increasing use of computers, desk jobs and long time sitting.
For getting cure from these kind of chronic tension in these areas, you first need to work on stretching the tight structures that prevent you from sitting or standing with good and exact alignment. If you strengthen the upper back without stretching the front of the chest, you will just keep falling back into the same faulty posture. Once you open up the chest and stretch out the back of the neck, then it’ll be time to work on strengthening the upper back.
Yoga is a wonderful way to accomplish both stretching and strengthening in a gentle and very effective way. Here are a few suggested poses that you can work on at home or at the office.

Arms Overhead With Strap

Using a yoga strap or belt, take your arms overhead, shoulder-distance apart. Make sure the palms face away from each other. If you cannot straighten your elbows in this position, take the arms wider on the belt. Drop the chin into the chest in order to relax the neck muscles and pull the strap apart. Hold for few deep breaths and repeat two or three times.

Downward Dog at the Wall

Stand facing a wall with your hands at waist-height. Walk your feet back into a table top position with your feet directly underneath your hips. Lift the sitting bones towards the sky as you press the hands into the wall. Feel as if your heart is melting towards the floor. If you feel a great deal of stretching in the hamstrings, keep the knees slightly bent. Hold for few deep breaths, focusing on opening the chest and lengthening the spine.
It is possible that your pain is coming from a different condition and therefore is important to consult with a doctor or physical therapist prior to beginning any exercise program.

YOGA MASTER
PRAVEEN KUMAR VERMA
info@praveenyogaacademy.com