autostretching0168

THE NECK 11.

Yourdifficulty is:	Bending your middle and lower neck backward.
Tight Muscles:	Deep muscles that bend neck forward.
Equipment:	Chair with firm back.
Starting Position:	Sit firmly in to back of chair. Cup hands on cheeks, fingers pointing backward. Open mouth slightly and draw chin back.
Stretching:	1.    Look up; using hands, bend head and neck backward so that stretch is fei deep inside front of neck. 2.    Look down and press head against cupped palms; hołd for 5 seconds. 3.    Relax; look up; bend head and neck backward to limit, assisting witb slight push of hands. 4.    Repeat until you feel you can stretch no further and muscles feel tighL Hołd this finał stretch from 15 seconds to a minutę or morę.
Stimulation:	1.    Release grip; clasp hands behind neck. 2.    Look up. 3.    Relax jaw; open mouth slightly and bend head backward to limit. 4.    Resist backward movement with clasped hands on back of neck. 5.    Hołd position a few seconds.
Common Errors:	*    Mouth closed. *    Chin juts forward.
Notę:	Stretch should be felt only deep inside front of neck. If you feel discoro-fort or pain in your head, throat, shoulders, arms, or any other part of yotr body, stop stretching immediately.
Normal Mobility:	You should be able to bend your neck noticeably backward all the way down to beginning of upper back.

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