As late as the early 1980’s the majority felt strongly that the use of barbells and strength training devices would inhibit athleticism by bulking and stiffening the athlete. Women in general had a strong fear of becoming too muscular. Educators worked to dispel these fears and strength and conditioning programs are now commonplace throughout athletics.

Some wrongly conceived beliefs still linger today, when it comes to training the musculature associated with the cervical spine especially with women who participate whole heartedly in strength training yet hesitate or are unwilling to exercise the neck region. It is important for the strength coach and educators to correct this inconsistency on the effect of the physiological response to muscular training and instill the importance of training the entire musculoskeletal system.

We want a strong neck, stiff tissue with a compliant tendon so, when we have contact and stretch the muscle will lengthen slowly transfer force reducing the acceleration. During lengthening the muscle dissipates force as heat, which in turn lowers the subconcussive forces protecting the athlete from sudden expected or unexpected movements. Get the head and neck Strong.