Stone muscles of the neck and shoulders. Neck muscle tension: how to help yourself? Mechanisms of occurrence and causes of the disease

The topic of today's article is shoulders. Together with their necks, they bear the burdens of our lives. All stress weighs heavily on them. Chronic tension in the shoulders not only causes pain in the neck-collar area, but also causes headaches. How to relax your shoulders? Here are a few simple tips and shoulder relaxation exercises.

Get into the habit of regularly taking time away from your computer work to give your shoulders some rest and relief. Do exercises to relax your shoulders and neck, for example, every one and a half to two hours. Your health will immediately improve, and gradually the health of your upper spine will improve. So how do you relax your shoulders?

Get rid of slouching

This sequence simple exercises to relieve tension in the shoulder muscles, it will help relax the shoulders, relieve pain and tension in the shoulders, stretch the pectoral muscles, improve posture and even increase the volume of air inhaled. You will definitely feel a surge of energy. Moreover, your head will become clearer. The exercise can be done standing, sitting on the floor on your knees, and even sitting on a chair. It may also be more convenient for you to get someone else's help.

To get rid of tension in your shoulder muscles, start with a warm-up. Slowly roll your shoulders. Do 3-6 rotations forward and backward.

Then stand with your hands behind your back, take a belt so that the distance between your hands is comfortable for your shoulders and elbows. Stand up straight. Drop your shoulders back and down. Straighten your elbows and raise your arms, moving them away from your back. Hold for 2-3 breathing cycles. The muscles need time to relax their shoulders.

A yoga instructor or exercise therapy methodologist will do you a great service by helping you turn your shoulders (see photo).

Holding the belt, gently pull your shoulders back and down. Notice the tension that occurs in your shoulders, arm muscles, and upper back. Do not raise your arms at this moment, just pull them down and hold, overcoming muscle resistance, for 10-12 seconds. Then relax. Inhale deeply and as you exhale, pull your shoulders back and down again. After relaxing your shoulders, arms and back, repeat this exercise a third time.

Then, holding the belt, raise both arms up. Try moving them further and higher, back away from your back. Stretch your chest forward and up. Breathe deeply and observe how high your chest rises as you inhale, and how wide your ribs spread. Squeeze your glutes and pull your tailbone forward and up, straightening your lower back. Maintain tension for 2-3 breathing cycles.

Lower your arms and release the belt. Wait with eyes closed. Notice the feeling of lightness in your arms and back. Repeat this exercise three times to relieve shoulder tension.

In this exercise, in addition to relaxing the shoulders, soft dynamic twists improve nutrition of the intervertebral discs.

Starting position: standing straight in Mountain pose. Knees slightly bent, buttocks tucked, tailbone tucked forward and up to straighten your lower back. The arms hang down, heavy and relaxed, like whips. Turn your body now to the right, now to the left so that your arms dangle relaxed, do not control their movement, trying to relax your shoulders as much as possible. Continue for 1 minute.

Stop, relax, observe the sensations of relaxation in your hands. Then clench your palms into soft fists and repeat the exercise. Relaxedly dangling hands with fists, hitting the hips, resemble rattles... 🙂 Continue for another 1 minute, work diligently to relax your shoulders and arms.

Preparing your arms for Garudasana - Eagle Pose - is an excellent exercise for relaxing the shoulders back and front. In addition, it will serve as an excellent warm-up before long-distance swimming or before playing tennis, golf, etc.

1. Try to move your right arm away from your body. In this case, the right hand tries to overcome the resistance of the left, but the left does not allow it to escape. Maintain even tension in the muscles of your right arm for 2-3 breathing cycles.

2. Relax. Take a deep breath and exhale completely.

3. Raise your right hand even closer to your throat and slowly extend it further to the left. Hold the new position for 3-5 breathing cycles. Notice how much further your arm can now stretch. For convenience, you can put left hand on the hand on the back of the neck.

Slowly lower your right arm, relaxing it.

Then repeat this shoulder relaxation exercise on the opposite arm.

Shoulder Relaxation in Garudasana

As you inhale, extend your arms to the sides. As you exhale, grab your opposite shoulders with your palms, crosswise so that your left elbow is higher than your right. Hugging yourself, hold for 2-3 breathing cycles. Smile! 🙂

Now relax your arms, leaving your elbows crossed. Bring the backs of your forearms together. If you have flexible arms, put your palms together. Slowly raise your clasped hands up, then lower down.

Extend your arms out to the sides again as you inhale. As you exhale, hug yourself by the shoulders, but now your right elbow is higher than your left. And repeat the previous exercise to relax your shoulders. Garudasana for the arms increases the flexibility of the joints of the shoulders, elbows and wrists.

The text uses materials from Lilias Folan.

Throughout the day, human muscles experience stress. This happens even to those people who do not exercise physical labor and lead a sedentary lifestyle. After a day spent at a desk or computer, a person often feels tension in the back, neck and shoulders. Regular tension that accumulates in the muscles leads to back pain, headaches, dizziness, malnutrition of the spine, lumbago and spasms in the neck and shoulders, and the development of cervical osteochondrosis.

Most common cause overstrain of the muscles of the neck and shoulders is an incorrect position of the body while sitting at a desk or computer desk. If the table does not fit the size of the chair, then the shoulders of the person sitting are raised, and sitting for a long time in this position causes muscle tension. The same thing happens if a person slouches and pushes his shoulders forward. The trapezius muscle gets tired and begins to hurt.

Incorrect sleeping position, sedentary work, excessive physical exercise, as well as emotional tension and stress negatively affect the condition of the muscles of the shoulder girdle.

According to Chinese medicine, the cervical-collar area contains the most important energy and reflexogenic point, which is responsible for the motor activity of the hands and brain activity. In the neck area there are 4 large arteries and 8 nerves, as well as the spinal canal. They are responsible for the blood supply to the organs of the head, chest, and arms. 32 neck muscles support the head and help make movements. Therefore, relaxing the shoulders and neck is very important for harmonious work the whole body.

Tired and overstrained muscles of the neck and shoulder girdle cause poor circulation, which can lead to a decrease in oxygen supply to the brain and a deterioration in metabolism. To prevent this from happening, it is necessary to regularly relieve tension and relax the muscles of the cervical-collar area.

Exercises to relax the muscles of the neck and shoulders

There are special exercises to relax tired muscles. They can be done after work at home or even in the office during a break. You need to do the exercises slowly, without sudden movements, working well on the areas in which the strongest tension is felt.

Exercise 1

Starting position when performing a set of exercises: sit on a chair, back straight, shoulder blades reaching towards each other, legs standing flat on the floor. While in this position, stretch the top of your head up, imagining that someone is pulling it by a thread, and at the same time lowering your shoulders. Stay in this position for a few seconds, then relax. Repeat 3 times.

Exercise 2

Lower your chin down, relaxing your neck. Stay in this position for about 30 seconds, and then begin to slowly turn your head left and right (the head remains lowered). Then throw your head back and also smoothly shake it from side to side.

Exercise 3

Join your hands at the back of your head, lower your elbows. Apply pressure with the back of your head to your palms, slightly lifting your head. Hands resist pressure. Afterwards, you need to relax your neck muscles by lowering your head. Repeat the exercise, alternating tension with relaxation.

Exercise 4

This exercise is similar to the previous one, only now you need to place your hands on your forehead. Press your forehead onto your palms, while simultaneously creating resistance with your hands. It is important that only the muscles above the shoulders are tensed, and that the head and arms do not move.

Exercise 5

Slowly raise and lower your shoulders several times, holding each position for 5 seconds. Repeat several times.

Exercise 6

Rotate your shoulders forward and backward (8 rotations in each direction).

Exercise 7

Place your hands on your belt with your fingers pointing forward. Reach your elbows behind each other's backs, trying to open them as best as possible. chest. Then relax. Repeat several times. You can also practice various modifications of this exercise, such as closing your palms behind your back.

Exercise 8

Stretch your head up, while slowly turning your head left and right. Then tilt your head back slightly and smoothly roll it from one shoulder to the other. Make sure that the exercise does not cause pain.

Exercise 9

Sitting on a chair, slowly lower your torso until your stomach touches your thighs. You need to lower your head first, then your upper back, and then bend at the waist. The arms hang freely. Stay in this position for a while and also slowly straighten up in the reverse order.

Exercise 10

Sit on a chair near the table. The back is straight. Place your elbows on the table and rest your chin on them. Pressing your chin onto your palms, create resistance with your hands. Stay tense for a few seconds and then relax. Repeat several times.

Exercise 11

Put right palm on right cheek. Press your cheek onto your hand, creating tension. Hold for a few seconds and then relax. Do the same with the left side.

Exercise 12

To perform this exercise you will need dumbbells weighing about 2 kg or two plastic bottles with water. Stand straight, holding dumbbells (bottles) in your hands. Hands down, back straight. Slowly raise and lower your shoulders. Repeat several times.

Relaxing massage

Massage is a very effective and pleasant way to relax tired neck and shoulder muscles. It’s good to have someone nearby who can massage the shoulder area after working day. But even if you don’t have an assistant, you can do it yourself.

You need to stand up straight and put your hands on the back of your neck. Slowly stroke the neck, do not press too hard. Then start rubbing your neck with your fingers, tapping and pinching it, little by little grabbing the muscles above the shoulders. Movements must be performed from top to bottom. Massage can be performed with the left and right hand alternately or two at a time. You also need to pay attention to the back of the head and the depression at the base of the head. It is advisable to massage the head itself. This self-massage helps you quickly achieve relaxation.

Prevention of muscle tension and fatigue

To prevent overstrain of the muscles of the cervical-collar area, it is enough to follow some simple recommendations.

• Throughout the day, constantly monitor your posture and do not slouch.
• While working, periodically give your muscles a rest: get up from the table, lean back in your chair, turn your head from side to side, roll your shoulders.
• During telephone conversations Try not to press the receiver to your ear with your shoulder.
• Pick up good mattress for your bed. Don't sleep on a high pillow.
• Choose a comfortable desk and chair so that you don’t have to bend over or slouch while working.
• In the evening after work, it is recommended to take a warm shower and relax physically and emotionally.

Relaxation exercises and massage help relieve accumulated tension and maintain flexibility and mobility of the neck and shoulder muscles at any age.

If you notice spelling mistake, please select it with the mouse and click Ctrl+Enter.