The muscles and joints in your neck control the nodding and rotation movements of your head and let you bend and twist your neck. Holding your head in an awkward position for any length of time can cause muscle tension and compress your neck vertebrae, which may have an indirect effect throughout your back and spine, causing pain and discomfort.

With regular practice, the simple exercises shown here will help you to maintain neck strength and mobility. If you have any existing problems, the exercises may also help you to regain loss of motion in the neck region and control pain.

Perform each movement slowly for five repetitions, resting a short time in between each set of movements.

If any of these exercises makes you feel uncomfortable or dizzy, slow down, reduce the extent of the stretch or skip the stretch altogether.