If one of your fitness goals is a thick neck, there’s only one way to get there: neck training. Strengthening weak neck muscles doesn’t just help your neck look toned and muscular, it also reduces your risk of injury, improves your posture, and alleviates neck pain and stiffness.
Anyone who’s been training their neck for a while will tell you there’s a lot to learn, and it’s important to take the time to do it properly - if you’re not careful, improper neck training could lead to a serious neck injury.
One of the things you have to think about is how neck training sets and reps you should perform each session. So, just how many sets for neck training should you be doing? And how do you do them safely, without literally risking your neck?
In this article, we’ll explain what you need to know for a safe at-home neck workout that brings real results. By the end, you’ll know the equipment you need, the neck training sets and reps you should be doing, and how long you can expect to wait until you see a strong, chiseled neck.
Benefits of Training Your Neck
Before we start talking about neck training, what are the benefits of a strong neck? There are so many reasons to do those neck curls, neck bridges, chin tucks, and other neck tightening exercises - here are just a few.
Strengthening Neck Muscles
The neck is made up of a complex network of muscles that provide stability, mobility, and support to the head and spine. With targeted neck exercises, you can strengthen these muscles, improving their resilience and reducing your risk of injury.
Strong neck muscles can provide significant neck protection, particularly in activities with sudden impacts or rapid changes in direction. For athletes involved in contact sports like football, rugby, or martial arts, a strong neck helps to protect against concussions and cervical spine injuries.
Also, for anyone who sits for a long time or has a relatively sedentary job, neck strengthening exercises can mitigate the risk of strain-related discomfort and musculoskeletal imbalances.
Plus, like any other part of your body you strengthen, strong neck muscles can make you look great! When you look at neck training before and after images, it’s easy to see the results and the difference that some neck strengthening can have on your neck’s appearance.
Enhancing Posture
Poor posture is so prevalent today, with many of us stuck sitting behind a desk for long hours. The muscles of the neck and upper back play a vital role in maintaining proper posture, as they help support the weight of the head and facilitate alignment of the spine.
Weakness or imbalance in these muscles can lead to postural deviations such as forward head posture, rounded shoulders, and an unnatural curvature of the spine. By incorporating exercises that target the neck muscles, you can improve your postural alignment and reduce strain on the cervical spine.
If you’re wondering how to improve neck posture, forward neck posture exercises are a great place to start. How long does it take to fix bad posture? As long as you’re consistent with your neck training, you can start to notice improvements within 3-8 weeks.
Improving Athletic Performance
Athletes involved in sports with rapid changes in direction, high-velocity impacts, or physical contact can all benefit from neck training. According to research, athletes with greater neck strength show enhanced proprioception, balance, and spatial awareness, all critical for optimal athletic performance.
As we already mentioned, a strong neck acts as a protective mechanism against concussions and other head injuries. By adding neck strengthening exercises to your training routine, you can bolster your resilience to impact forces and reduce the likelihood of a potentially serious injury.
Preventing Neck Pain and Discomfort
Neck pain and discomfort affect millions of people worldwide, often stemming from poor posture, muscular imbalances, or repetitive strain injuries. Targeted neck exercises can help to alleviate these symptoms by strengthening the surrounding muscles and improving biomechanical alignment.
Specific exercises that reduce the strain placed on the cervical spine and alleviate tension in the neck and shoulders can help correct muscle imbalances. Strengthening neck muscles can also help distribute load more evenly throughout the spine, reducing the risk of localized pain and discomfort.
Research suggests that people who engage in regular neck training sets and reps experience less neck pain and better movement than those who don’t do neck workouts. If you’re carrying stress in shoulders and neck, neck exercises might be your ticket to comfort.
How Many Sets for Neck Training is Optimal?
So, how many sets for neck training should you be doing? Effective neck training involves striking a delicate balance between intensity, volume, and frequency to stimulate muscle growth and strength adaptations while minimizing the risk of overtraining or injury. Here’s what you need to know.
Understanding Training Volume: The Relationship Between Sets, Reps, and Intensity
Training volume, or the total amount of work you do during a workout, determines how much muscle you gain, but also how much stress and strain is placed on your neck. It includes the number of sets, repetitions (reps) per set, and intensity of your neck training.
Reps refer to the number of times you do a workout. For example, you might do 10 chin tucks - that’s 10 reps. Sets refers to the number of times you repeat that “set” of 10. So, if you do 10 chin tucks, take a short break, and then do 10 more, you’re doing two sets of 10 reps.
Typically, you’ll do more reps if you’re doing a lower-intensity movement. If you’re doing a higher-intensity movement, or pushing yourself with increased resistance, you might do fewer reps. If you’re doing fewer reps, you may choose to do more sets.
Tailoring Sets to Your Goals
The optimal number of sets for neck training is really up to you, and depends on what you’re trying to achieve. If you want to tone your neck, you may benefit from higher training volumes, including multiple sets performed to near failure - the point where you simply can’t do it again.
On the other hand, if you’re focused on building a lot of muscle or muscle endurance, you may prioritize heavier loads and lower rep ranges. You also don’t have to stick to one tactic - you can increase the resistance and do fewer sets on some days, and do more at a lower resistance on others.
It also depends on the specific exercises you’re doing. Compound exercises like neck extensions may require fewer sets compared to neck isometrics or exercises targeting specific neck muscles.
When tailoring sets to your goals, think about progressive overload, which involves gradually increasing the training intensity over time to boost your performance. This may involve progressively adding sets or increasing resistance to challenge your muscles and stimulate growth.
So, How Many Sets for Neck Training is Ideal?
So, how many sets for neck training should you be doing? As a general guideline, beginners should start with 1-2 sets per exercise and gradually increase as you become stronger and more comfortable with the movements.
Once you know what you’re doing, and as long as you’re not feeling neck pain after workouts, you can increase to up to 3-4 sets per exercise. Rather than focusing on the number of sets you’re doing, focus on your form while you’re doing the movements, with slow, controlled motions.
Pay attention to signs of fatigue, soreness, and recovery, and be willing to experiment with different set and rep schemes to find what works best for you. Remember, it might not be the same for every exercise - neck exercises for vertigo and exercises for turkey neck may require different sets.
What About Rep Ranges?
Like sets, the number of reps you do depends partially on what your training goals are. Lower reps (typically 1-6) are generally associated with strength development, while higher reps (usually 8-12 or more) are targeted toward hypertrophy, or muscle growth.
If you’re prioritizing strength gains, lower rep ranges are generally favored, as they allow for maximal recruitment of fast-twitch muscle fibers and facilitate improvements in neuromuscular coordination and force production. You can do also higher resistant exercises and give yourself longer rest intervals.
Higher reps induce metabolic stress and cellular damage, both of which contribute to muscle growth. These rep ranges are often associated with moderate to high volumes of training, shorter rest intervals, and a focus on achieving muscular fatigue within each set.
So, what do the best neck training sets and reps schedule look like? Generally, the specific exercises you’re doing (like neck fat exercises or thyroid neck exercises) will come with their own guidelines for sets and reps. If they don’t, start with 2 sets of 5-6 reps, and take it from there.
Other Considerations in Forming a Well-Rounded Neck Training Regimen
As well as considering your neck training sets and reps, there are a few other things to think about when you’re developing a neck workout routine or learning how to build neck muscles at home. Here are some of the things to keep in mind when it comes to how to build neck strength.
Exercise Selection
As well as understanding how many sets for neck training you should be doing, it’s also important to think about the exercises themselves. A well-rounded neck routine should include exercises for the major muscle groups of the neck, including the cervical spine, trapezius, and sternocleidomastoid muscles.
It’s important to include muscles on side of neck, as well as neck extensions, flexions, lateral flexions, rotations, and neck flexibility exercises. If you have a specific issue you’re dealing with, you can try neck arthritis exercises, tinnitus neck exercises, or neck spasm stretches.
Training Frequency
Not sure how often to train neck muscles? The frequency of your sessions impacts your muscle development and recovery. Some people might find 3-4 sessions per week beneficial, while for others, once or twice a week is enough. Make sure you leave at least 48 hours of recovery time between sessions.
Progressive Overload
Progressive overload involves gradually increasing the demands placed on your neck muscles over time to stimulate growth and adaptation. Incorporating progressive overload into your neck training routine is essential if you want to see continued progress and development.
The best way to achieve progressive overload is to increase the resistance each time you do a neck routine. If you don’t have the right equipment to increase resistance, you can also try increasing your neck training sets and reps.
Exercise Equipment
While bodyweight exercises can be effective for beginners or those with limited access to equipment, specialized neck training devices can provide additional resistance and target specific muscle groups more effectively. Basically, the right equipment will give you better results, faster.
The Iron Neck neck machine is the #1 neck workout harness, trusted by professional athletes, doctors, physical therapists, and other health professionals around the world. Its unique design makes it the only device that provides all-in-one training for recovery, prevention, posture, and mobility.
With the Iron Neck’s unique 360-degree isometric training, you can improve blood flow to every muscle in your neck, especially the small, hard-to-reach muscles that often cause pain and instability issues.
Plus, the Iron Neck makes progressive overload possible with its unique dynamic tension brake system, which applies pressure as you perform neck rotations and other exercises. The Iron Neck is the safest, most effective way to train your neck muscles.
Closing Thoughts on Neck Training Sets and Reps
So, how many sets for neck training should you be doing? Ultimately, it depends on your training goals and the types of neck exercises you’re doing. If you’re new to neck training, it’s a good idea to start with lower sets (1-2) and reps (5-6) of each movement, then gradually increasing.
Remember, performing steady, controlled movements is always more important than the number of neck training sets and reps you do. Focus on your form, make sure you’re doing each exercise properly, and stay alert for any pain or discomfort.
With the Iron Neck, training your neck muscles has never been easier or safer. With just one piece of specialized equipment, you can increase your neck strength, tone your neck muscles, improve your posture, reduce your risk of sports injuries, and alleviate neck pain and stiffness.
Ready for your very own neck transformation? Get started today with the Iron Neck!