Written by Garett Reid | NSCA, CSCS, CISSN, M.S.E.S.S
Fact checked by Kirsten Yovino, CPT Brookbush Institute
FACT CHECKED
The most overlooked muscle trained in the human body is the neck.
Heck, is the neck even a muscle? Yes. Yes, it is. And since it's a muscle, we know we can train it.
Even though it's often overlooked, a strong and muscular neck is one of the most defining features, giving a lifter that jacked look that instantly portrays they're serious about their gym time. At the same time, a stronger neck will help prevent injury, and direct neck training can even decrease persistent pain.
This article will cover what you need to know about training your neck, including its benefits and the best exercises you can do.
Table of Contents:
- What Are The Muscles In Your Neck?
- 5 Benefits Of Neck Exercises
- 5 Best Neck Exercises For Mass
- FAQs
What Are The Muscles In Your Neck?
Above, we noted that the neck is indeed a muscle. Technically, that's not entirely correct, as the neck is simply the area of the body that connects the head to the body. That's like saying the arm is a muscle.
However, the neck does contain muscles, including a ton of small, little muscles that provide stability and mobility for things like swallowing and breathing. Most importantly, there are four large muscles that you need to be aware of when training.
1) Trapezius:
The trapezius muscle, also known simply as the traps, is a large muscle shaped like an elongated trapezoid (4-sided shape). The upper part goes up the neck, the sides run down the top of the shoulder, and the bottom lands about halfway down the back. It's so large that it's broken up into three parts:
- Upper
- Middle
- Lower
Many people are only concerned with the upper traps as this is the part that supports the neck. It also raises behind the neck to provide that "jacked" look. While these may look good in the mirror, all the traps, even the lower ones, play a role in neck support and proper movement. This means that performing trapezius exercises is crucial to your training!
2) Levator scapulae:
The levator scapulae originates on the cervical spine at C1-C4 and inserts on the medial border of the scapula.
It's a long thin muscle running down the neck's side, making it one of your posterior neck muscles. The levator scapulae's primary role is the elevation and retraction of the shoulder blades and extending and flexing of the neck laterally.
Not only is it important to train this muscle, but it's also important to stretch it! For some great exercises, check out our article on 5 Levator Scapulae Stretches.
3) Sternocleidomastoid:
The sternocleidomastoid is a large two-headed muscle that runs down both sides of the neck. The two heads originate from different sections, which means they have slightly different roles. One head originates from the medial third of the clavicle at your upper chest while the other originates from the temporal bone.
Its primary jobs are the lateral flexion of the neck and neck rotation. In addition, both heads can flex to cause neck flexion.
4) Scalene:
The scalene muscles are a set of three, paired, lateral neck muscles. These three pairs sit on the lateral neck's anterior, middle, and posterior.
They originate from the C3-C6 vertebrae and insert onto the first rib's scalene tubercle and superior border. The scalene muscles function as accessory muscles for breathing while also playing a role in all neck movements.
5 Best Benefits Of Neck Exercises
Training the neck is critical to any training program, as it's not just for looks. Here are a few of the many benefits we love.
1) Look Yoked:
After the pejorative "chicken legs," the term "pencil neck" is one of the most common jabs delivered to a man's physique. A small neck on a man can dramatically affect their physique and general presence.
Not only can it look off compared to the rest of your bodybuilding, it can make you look less intimidating. Including specific neck training in your program is all you need to get that "yoked" look.
2) Prevent Concussions And Neck & Spinal Injuries:
This should be somewhat obvious, but a stronger, thicker neck can withstand more stress. Your neck contains the key muscles supporting your head and neck, ultimately protecting it from injury.
To prevent these injuries, you must exhibit high isometric strength, allowing you to mitigate strong movements from high-force impacts. If your head can't counteract these movements, it will snap back, increasing the chance of spinal injury or concussions.
3) Reduce Neck Pain:
Above, we saw how a solid, muscular neck can prevent injury. But what if you already have pain? You should still strengthen your muscles to find relief.
Performing either endurance or strength training effectively increases the Na +-K +-pump concentration. This causes an increase in the number of capillaries in the trapezius muscles, thus reducing pain.
There are a few more mechanisms by which neck training counteracts pain, but researchers still aren't sure which is the main factor. Regardless, it doesn't matter how it works; all we know is that it works.
Short-term training can provide faster results, but these are transitory and will disappear after training. Therefore, to ensure long-lasting changes, engage in regular strength training. Prolonged strength training will increase strength, range of motion and improve mobility, ultimately reducing pain.
4) Reduce Headaches:
A study from 2010 ran a year-long study on the effect of different training methods on neck pain1. These three were:
- Strength
- Endurance
- Stretching
After a year, they found that all three methods for training the neck muscles positively affected neck pain. Strength training had the most significant effect while stretching was last.
5) Improve Breathing:
As mentioned above, your neck muscles, specifically the scalene muscle, are active in breathing. This muscle constricts and expands to assist in respiration.
Weak neck muscles hinder your ability to breathe efficiently, which is especially important during high-intensity exercise.
5 Best Exercises For A Thicker Neck
I am now going to go over my favorite exercises to build a thicker neck. I first want to note that there are a lot of great exercises that will build a thicker neck. Your traps are part of your neck muscles, so any pulling motion will train them.
For example, deadlifts build thicker necks, but they won't be on this list as you should already be doing them. Instead, this list will include exercises more specific to the multiple muscles that support and manipulate your neck.
1) Snatch Grip Overhead Shrug:
We said we'd include the shrug, but this version is slightly different from what you may have been expecting.
When most people perform shrugs, it's done so with the load beneath the traps so that the muscles are pulling the load up. There's nothing wrong with this - in fact, you'll perform a variation like this below. However, despite being rare, an overhead shrug is one of the best neck exercises you can do.
As for the rep scheme to follow, like other shrugs, you are better off using a heavier load as the movement pattern is so small. Hold the load at the top with an isometric hold for best results. Target 3-5 sets of 4-6 reps each, with a 5-second isometric hold at the top.
How to do the Snatch Grip Overhead Shrug:
- Start with the bar racked at a setting for shoulder press.
- Grab the barbell with your grip just outside your shoulders and an overhand grip
- Unrack the bar and perform a shoulder press. Push the bar overhead and lock your arms.
- Perform a shrugging motion by driving your shoulders up to your ears.
- Hold in this position for 5 seconds and then slowly lower your shoulders but keep your arms locked out over your head.
2) Front Barbell Shrug:
Now onto the shrug exercise you're probably thinking about. If you haven't done it in the gym, you've likely seen people load up a heavy barbell and get to work.
When planning rep schemes, like the shrug above, you should use a heavier load with low reps and an isometric hold at the top. Aim for 3-5 sets of 4-6 reps each, with a 5-second isometric hold at the top.
How to do the Front Barbell Shrug:
- Start with the bar racked at a setting for shoulder press.
- Grab the barbell with your grip just outside your shoulders and an overhand grip
- Unrack the bar and let the bar hang freely. This will pull your shoulders forward and protract your shoulder blades. Keep your chin tucked.
- Retract your shoulder blades, perform a shrugging motion, and pull your shoulders up to your ears. Hold for 5 seconds.
- Slowly lower shoulders.
3) Neck Bridge:
If you have ever watched Olympic wrestlers, one thing you'll notice is that they all have thick necks. The reason is that they train neck bridges basically every day, as it's a move they can use to avoid being pinned.
What's awesome about the neck bridge is that you can do it anywhere since you only need your body weight. It also lets you train the neck muscles in a forward, back, and lateral direction, meaning you can hit every neck muscle. Neck flexion, extension, lateral... you get it all.
The neck bridge is a bodyweight exercise, so giving an exact rep scheme is difficult. Instead, use RPE (rate of perceived exertion) and perform reps until you hit a 7-8 (70-80% max intensity). If you have the strength, rotate through each direction in the same session. If not, rotate in different directions throughout the week.
Note: This is more of an advanced movement and may not be suitable for beginners.
How to do the Neck Bridge:
- Lay down with your back on the ground. Bend your knees and lay your hands on the ground. Push yourself into a bridge so your weight is supported on your feet and head.
- When you perform the bridge, you want to go up to the crown of your head (very top). This is where you begin. If you feel this is challenging enough, you can stay there and hold.
- If you feel strong, start to manipulate your head to stress your muscles. You can either push back to your knees, come down to each ear, go forward and allow it to go down on the back of your head, or perform circular motions.
4) Upright Row:
The upright row is another excellent exercise for growing your traps. In fact, it is one of the best neck exercises after the shrug in terms of muscle activation, but it requires a smaller load.
The rope high pull is a great exercise for muscle hypertrophy and muscular endurance. Therefore, I recommend following a rep scheme of 2 sets of 8-15 reps each.
Looking for more great options? Check out these 9 Best Upright Row Alternatives.
How to do the Upright Row:
- Perform the upright row with a cable machine and rope attachment. This allows more mobility in the shoulders to prevent impingement.
- Set the pulley in the lowest setting and attach the rope.
- Grab the rope so your thumbs are down, and your pinky is on the end.
- Keeping your hands towards the center of your body, drive your elbows upward.
- As you drive your elbows up, you want to ensure that your elbows are above your hands the entire movement. Do this by focusing on only driving your elbows up rather than lifting the load.
5) Snatch Grip High Pull:
If you look at Olympic weightlifters, they all have bigger neck muscles than most due to the massive stress placed on them during the pull. Specifically, the neck muscles are worked during the second pull when you perform a powerful shrugging movement (we'll go over specific directions below).
The good thing is that you don't need to perform Olympic lifts to build bigger neck muscles. Instead, you can perform the snatch grip high pull. This movement starts by grabbing a bar off the floor with a wide snatch grip. You then perform the first pull with triple extension and an explosive shrug to pull the weight up.
When determining the rep scheme for your neck workout, keep in mind the snatch grip high pull is a power-strength movement. Further, you need to use solid form, or you can put yourself at risk of injury. As such, I suggest using heavier loads with low reps and high sets. This translates to 3-5 sets of 2-5 reps each.
If you enjoy these, try out some more Olympic weightlifting movements, featured in SET FOR SET's Beginner Olympic Weightlifting Program.
How to do the Snatch Grip High Pull:
- Stand behind a barbell and grab it with a snatch grip, about 1.5x your regular grip.
- Sit back so that your shoulders stay over the barbell. Keep your back straight and allow tension to build in your posterior leg muscles. The starting position basically looks like a deadlift's set-up but with a snatch grip.
- Look straight ahead. Begin the movement by pushing your legs down into the ground to propel your body up.
- Gradually build the speed of the bar as it moves up your body. Once it reaches your knee, use maximal force.
- Keep driving until your body is almost erect. Here you perform triple extension, a powerful movement involving three actions. At the same time, explosively extend your hips with a "pop," performing dorsiflexion of the ankle (as if you are jumping); perform a powerful shrug.
- Allow the bar to travel up your body while also doing a high pull. Bring your elbows up so that they're higher than your hands. Pull until your arms are raised above your shoulders slightly.
- Allow the bar to come back down with a controlled drop.
FAQs
Now let's look at some specific questions lifters have about training their neck.
Is the neck hard to grow?
Growing a thick neck isn't necessarily hard. You don't even need designated neck workouts. You just need to make including neck exercises a priority. Further, you must be consistent.
How long does it take to get a thick neck?
The length of time it takes to grow a thick neck can depend on several factors.
Is neck thickness genetic?
Partially. Like every body part, genetics and your body type do play a role in how big your neck is naturally.
Can you overdo neck exercises?
Yes. Using too much volume or too heavy of loads can injure the muscles in the neck. In addition, using poor form can also injure the muscle.
Neck Exercises For Mass: Overview
Putting muscle mass on your traps and other neck muscles isn't that difficult. All you need to do is lift with purpose and include a neck exercise or two.
These major neck muscles will grow just like your other muscles if you follow the basic principles of hypertrophy. Perform progressive overload, eat a surplus of calories, and use the exercises in this article.
Do that, and you can be sure no one will call you "pencil neck."
Looking for more great neck-related content? Check out our article on How To Get Rid Of Neck Fat & our piece on How To Release Neck & Shoulder Tension.
References:
- Ylinen, J., et al. “Effect of Neck Exercises on Cervicogenic Headache: A Randomized Controlled Trial.” Journal of Rehabilitation Medicine, vol. 42, no. 4, 2010. https://doi.org/10.2340/16501977-0527.
Garett Reid
Author