The chin tuck head lift is a neck strengthening exercise done lying on your back. You tuck your chin in first, then lift your head just clear of the floor and hold it there, so the muscles at the front of your neck (deep neck flexors) work against the weight of your head. It is harder than a chin nod with the head resting down, and it usually comes once that feels easy.

How to do the chin tuck head lift

Lie on your back on a mat with your knees bent and your feet flat on the floor.
Cross your arms over your chest with your hands resting on the opposite shoulders, and gently flatten the small of your back onto the mat.
Slowly tuck your chin in, like making a small double chin. The back of your neck should feel long.
Keeping that tuck, lift your head a small way off the mat while your shoulders stay down, and hold while breathing steadily.
Lower your head back down slowly without letting the chin poke out, then relax fully before the next lift.

What you should feel

Effort in the front of your neck and under your chin, with a lengthening feeling at the back of the neck. It is hard work but should not be painful.

Common mistakes

Leading with the chin, so it pokes up toward the ceiling as the head lifts. Tuck first and keep it tucked.
Lifting your shoulders as if starting a sit-up. Only your head comes up.
Arching your lower back away from the mat.
Holding your breath or clenching your jaw.

How often

Many programs start with 5 to 10 lifts and a short hold of 3 to 5 seconds, resting a few seconds between lifts, then lengthen the hold toward 10 seconds over the weeks, once or twice a day. Your physio will adjust this.

Stop and check with your physio if

Your neck pain or headache builds with each lift, or pain, numbness or tingling spreads into an arm or hand.
You feel dizzy, faint or unsteady. Stop and get medical advice the same day. If you faint, it does not settle within a few minutes of sitting still, or you cannot stand or walk steadily, call emergency services.
Things look double, your vision suddenly blurs or goes, your speech slurs or becomes muddled, swallowing becomes hard, your face or lips go numb, one side of your face droops or one side of your body goes weak or numb, you suddenly become so dizzy or unsteady that you fall or cannot stand or walk, your legs suddenly give way but you do not black out (a drop attack), or you get a sudden severe headache. Stop and call emergency services, even if it goes away.
An electric shock feeling runs down your back or into your arms or legs as your head bends forward. Stop and get medical advice the same day.

From the clinic

This is a step up from the deep neck flexor exercise, where your head stays resting on the mat. Get that one and the seated chin tuck comfortable first. If your chin starts to poke up or your neck begins to shake, lower down and rest. A short hold with the tuck kept is worth more than a long one where the chin drifts up.

If your neck pain started after a recent car accident or fall, get it checked by a doctor or physio before you begin. Keep still and call emergency services if the pain came straight after a high-speed crash, a car that rolled over, being thrown from a vehicle, being hit by a vehicle while walking or cycling, a motorbike or quad bike accident, a horse riding accident, a diving injury or a fall from a height or down several stairs, or if you have numbness, tingling or weakness in an arm or leg. If you hit your head and were knocked out, cannot remember what happened, have had a headache ever since, are being sick, or take medicine that thins your blood other than aspirin on its own, go to an emergency department, and do not drive yourself.

If you have a condition that stiffens the spine, such as ankylosing spondylitis, new neck pain after even a minor fall, knock or jolt is an emergency: keep still and call emergency services if it started straight after the injury, or go to an emergency department straight away, without driving yourself, if it started later. See a doctor the same day, before any exercise, if you are 65 or over, have low bone density (osteoporosis) or have taken steroid tablets for a long time, if your neck pain is severe, if you cannot turn your head halfway toward each shoulder, or if it hurts when you press on the bony middle of the back of your neck. Having none of these does not rule out an injury.

After neck surgery or a broken bone in the neck, check with your surgeon or physio before you start. Past the first trimester of pregnancy, ask your physio before doing exercises lying flat on your back.

Written and checked by the PocketPhysio editorial team. Last updated 2026-09-28.

This page is general education, not a diagnosis or a personal treatment plan. If you have pain, an injury or a health condition, see a physiotherapist or doctor before starting new exercises.

Chin tuck head lift