Why your neck hurts

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There are many different variables as to why ones neck would hurt. There might physical trauma from an injury, there could be genetic issues, or there could poor structural integrity throughout the entire body causing you to feel pain in certain areas. Usually it's the latter, so that's what we will address. Most humans in this day and age sit for more than 5+ hours a day. During these periods of sitting the body will undergo a few changes. The biggest change that happens is in the structure of the body. A healthy body that can maintain neutral posture over a long period of time. Neutral posture meaning that all your joints are stacked perfectly over top of each other, and your muscles are not compensating. A body that cannot maintain neutral will always search for the path of least resistance. In the case of sitting the path of least resistance is the slouched position, where your head is positioned in front of the body rather than on top. The shoulders will roll forward and the ribs will drop in towards the belly. For now let's just talk about the neck. When you have that slouch position your neck gets compressed. Specifically on the back of your head and neck (Cervicle spine). Reference an anatomy poster or image or book for this next part. Your sternocliedomastoid and your scalenes ( we will stick with these 2 for now) are muscles that attach the head to the collar bone. When these muscles get tight they pull the head down and forward. As a chain reaction, the muscles around the base of your skull ( trapezius, levator scapula, and the splenus muscles will tighten up and compress your cervical spine. Being in this position for days, weeks, months, years, decades, etc will literally cause the structure of you body to change. Old people with the hunch back syndrome are a result of that. Look at your neighbours, colleagues, friends, and family. I can guarantee that they all have an issue related to this article. The pains you feel are a symptom of a much bigger issue. Your body is not working to capacity, and is in fact losing its capacity to do work. If you have questions about this article feel free to comment. I am a personal trainer specializing in the optimization of the human species. Functional training is the name of the game, and everything I provide is applicable one way or another.