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By: Jill Miller | Friday, August 27th, 2010 |
Comments 22
Category:
Neck Pain | Tags: massage therapy, Neck Pain, neck pain relief, self massage, sternocleidomastoid, Yoga Therapy, Yoga Tune Up Balls |
Try this quick exercise using your Yoga Tune Up® Therapy Balls to relieve pain and tension in the sternocleidomastoid, a neck muscle that laterally flexes the head (i.e. clamps your ear to your shoulder to hold your cellphone in place):
The sternocleidomastoid
Jill Miller, Creator of Yoga Tune Up®
After studying yoga, movement, and the human body for over twenty years, I created Yoga Tune Up® as a simple way to restore my body and mind, keeping me balanced and free of pain. Using a specific and unique set of poses, movements and self massage tools, you too can LIVE BETTER IN YOUR BODY WITH YOGA TUNE UP®.
I love this move and am very exited to have my new Yoga Tune Up Therapy Balls to work the kinks out. My neck tends to carry a lot of the tension of the day and I think this will really help.
Thanks Jill…
Susan Stansbury
Ahhh!
I love the Yoga Tune Up Balls…
I just tried this one. It’s great!!
I like you advice on using the yoga tune up balls for the neck area to stretch these muscles..the sternocleido Mastoideus.
Just watched this three times and tried it. Great way to start the morning.
We often tilt our heads laterally when listening to someone since it is a common non-verbal way to communicate that we are listening to that person. It’s our silent way of saying “I hear you and I am trying to understand.” The exercise Jill demonstrates helps us address the tension we store in our sternocleidomastoid so we can continue to tilt our heads and “be all ears” to those that are talking to us.
Many of us carry mental or physical stress the in neck, with this massage the neck will have full range of motion, and relieve pain and tension in the sternocleidomastoid.
Such great advice. After this weekend, I am so much more aware of how tense my neck and shoulders are. I had become so used to it (adaptive shorterning/lock long) that I took it as my natural state. I’m so excited to try all these exercises (esp. this one) to really maintain an anatomically sound, comfortable, and healthy posture.
Awesome technique. This is an area that most people don’t even know is tight! If it is tight it can form trigger points that will refer to the head, jaw and sternum. I especially like that this is a “goody bag” we can send home with our clients if they have any issues with another person touching the front of their neck. Muchas gracias senorita – I have a laundry list of people in mind to share this with.
I have taught this in my class and it is a “crowd pleasure”
There is all oooh and no urgh for this one.
This might be my favorite Yoga Tune Up ball exercise…I just did it sitting in bed.
I carry a lot of stress in my neck and I love this move with the YTU balls. Takes the kinks out better than anything else I have tried.
Most of us carry stress and tension in our neck. I just tried this exercise and can already feel some relief. I get migraines and plan to try this exercise during the next one to see if it reduces the tension.
What a wonderfully simple way to provide some relief to the sternocleidomastoid. I know that I hold tension here at times, and have begun wearing a headset when using my home or cell phone to reduce the amount of lateral flexion in my neck when making a longer phone call. It’s so nice to have a way to soften this muscle when it gets tight.
I can’t wait to do this nexk exercise–and the other yoga tun up exercise where you place the two balls on a block behind the neck. I’ve been losing some range of motion in my neck–and it travels from one side to the other. This has been going on for a month. I’ve changed my pillow, etc. Something in my neck is out of place. I’ll check back in a couple of weeks, or as soon as I have relief.
Thanks for the video!
Nice video. Caution to those with strong vagal nerve responses if the balls are applied to both sides of the neck simultaneously. I don’t think anyone would do that, but for fun, I tried it (and didn’t pass out or feel light headed). One might be ‘tempted’ to roll both sides of the neck with the balls at the same time for a more intense effect. This of course, would not be advised!
I always have so much tension on the left side on my neck; that feel really really good!!
Thank you for the tip.
Woohoo! After doing that sternocleidomastoid and occipital release, my neck is 90% free of pain. I got some tightness in my neck after surfing yesterday. I wonder if you could scrub this muscle with the balls, but I think it would be difficult. I think 3-5 more repetitions of this and I will sleep soundly and have my neck rotation back…I am back. It only took one more rep and some tweaking in the upper trap region with the ball. No more pain!
this was a great technique for a muscles i didn’t even know were tight. looks like i’m going to have to take more of my conference calls on speaker phone – or bring my YTU balls to work….and in the car…and on flights
. thanks for the tips!
Just finished Yoga Tune Up anatomy with Sarah Court in my teacher training course and she showed us how to use the balls, fantastic!! So, psyched with this massage since I hold the phone almost all day!!
I have to give you Kudos for this was one of the YTU releases/techniques that I used to rehab my Whiplash injury. Along with Block head variations and the Platysma stretches. These DVDs have helped me and my family – many thanks.
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