Standing neck stretches are a set of four gentle holds: chin down toward your chest, head back to look at the ceiling, each ear toward its shoulder, and a turn to look over each shoulder. You pause in each position for a few slow breaths. The whole set is done standing tall, arms loose by your sides.

How to do the standing neck stretches

Stand tall with your arms relaxed by your sides and your feet slightly apart, and look straight ahead.
Lower your chin toward your chest and hold. Then lift your head slowly to look up at the ceiling, let your throat relax, and hold again before coming back to level.
With your eyes still facing forward, tilt your head so one ear drops toward the shoulder on that side. Hold, come back to the middle, then tilt to the other side. Your shoulders stay down.
Keep your chin level and turn your head slowly to look over one shoulder until you feel a gentle stretch on the other side of your neck. Hold, then turn all the way round to the other shoulder and hold.
Finish by bringing your head back to the middle, looking straight ahead, and let your shoulders relax.

What you should feel

A mild stretch on the side of the neck away from the movement: along the back as you look down, the front as you look up, and the side as you tilt or turn. Most people find it eases a little the longer they hold.

Common mistakes

Lifting a shoulder toward your ear during the side tilts.
Letting your head hang back with your jaw clenched. Keep your throat soft as you look up.
Turning your shoulders or upper body with your head.
Holding your breath through the holds.

How often

Many programs hold each position for 10 to 20 seconds and go through the set 2 to 3 times, once or twice a day. Keep the look-up hold shorter, about 5 seconds, as in the video. Your physio will adjust this.

Stop and check with your physio if

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.
You feel pain, pins and needles or numbness in your arm or hand, or a hold becomes sharp or pinching in the neck instead of a stretch.

From the clinic

Looking up at the ceiling while you stand can throw your balance off for a moment, more so when you hold it. Stand close to a kitchen counter or a sturdy chair, keep your feet slightly apart, and bring your head back to level before you move away. If standing feels unsteady, do the same movements sitting down, as in the neck range of motion exercises. If a neck movement makes you dizzy, stop, sit still until it settles, and get medical advice the same day before you try again.

The holds here are gentle. Let the weight of your head take you into each position, with no pulling from your hands, and stay where you can breathe easily. For a firmer side stretch with one hand anchoring the shoulder, see the upper trapezius stretch.

If you have rheumatoid arthritis or Down syndrome, or have been told the top of your neck is unstable or there is pressure on the spinal cord in your neck, speak to your physio before you do these holds. After neck surgery or a broken bone in the neck, check with your surgeon or physio before you start.

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.

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.

Standing neck stretches