Why You’re Not Serious if You Don’t Train Your Neck
Today we know that smoking is extremely bad for you, there is decades of evidence linked to smoking and cancer as well as having a serious impact on general health.This is why any adult who hasn’t been living under a rock, who is of sound mind, is clearly fucking insane taking up smoking.
This is how I feel about anyone who is sparring and competing in boxing and is aware of ways to train their neck but doesn’t. The benefits far outweigh the corners cut and time saved not training neck.
Why Train Your Neck?
Your neck stabilises your head Collins et al. 2014 study found that athletes with concussions often had smaller, weaker necks. They also found that every one pound increase in neck strength leads to a 5% decrease of concussion. Another study Eckner et al. (2014) done on male and female athletes, found that athletes with bigger and stronger necks were less prone to concussion compared to those with weaker and smaller necks.
Your neck must be able to withstand the unpredictable, rapid dynamic movements imposed on it by external forces/getting walloped in the face. Based on my own experience in boxing, when I have been consistently training neck, punches glance and slide off me. My head doesn’t fly back and it is much harder for judges behind me to see if the shot landed or I blocked it, but most importantly I am reducing my risk of concussion and not shaking my brain as violently around my skull, thus saving myself some much needed brain cells.
How to Train Your Neck
Start light: Your neck is not a big muscle, we are not aiming for one rep maxes with neck curls. A neck injury is probably a serious injury, so take it easy.
Train frequently, aim to train 2-3xs a week, 10+ reps, size is the prize.
Do isometrics, this is a safe way to maintain and improve neck strength. As we are not trying to overload the extensions, this will prove a safe but challenging exercise.
Check out the south_east_strength instagram page for neck exercises!
References
J Exerc Rehabil. The effects of vision training, neck musculature strength, and reaction time on concussions in an athletic population, 2018 Oct; 14(5): 706–712.
Collins CL, Fletcher EN, Fields SK, Kluchurosky L, Rohrkemper MK, Comstock RD, Cantu RC. Neck strength: a protective factor reducing risk for concussion in high school sports. J Prim Prev. 2014;35:309–319.
Eckner JT, Oh YK, Joshi MS, Richardson JK, Ashton-Miller JA. Effect of neck muscle strength and anticipatory cervical muscle activation on the kinematic response of the head to impulsive loads. Am J Sports Med. 2014;42:566–576
