• G8way Max Forum

  Can improving my movement, specifically neck alignment, improve my headaches?

  Posted by Max Mover on April 8, 2023 at 2:26 pm

  First, let’s note that headaches can occur for many reasons. Dehydration, specific illnesses, certain treatments, and environments can all contribute to headaches. A stressful conversation could even contribute to a headache. But does the physicality & shape of one’s body contribute to one’s headaches?

  Before tackling the above question, let’s dive a little into neck alignment.

  This is widely known among many orthopedic doctors; poor upper back and neck posture can cause bound-up tension when the head is in a weird & awkward position for long durations.
  And oh my goshhh, if G8way Max had to guesstimate, we’d say 8.5/10 people need corrective neck alignment exercises because their head has pushed an inch or so out of alignment.
  You most likely have had poor neck alignment at some point in your life, whether you were able to subconsciously correct it or supplement the corrective exercises to fix it or not.
  And even if you are better than most, you’re probably only at 90% with your neck alignment compared to the indigenous hunters and gatherers.
  So a considerable sum has poor neck alignment.. aka “Forward Neck Syndrome.” You can have it and correct it, even not knowingly. Poor neck alignment can occur through habits and environments and be fixed in a few minutes. This syndrome can be more common if you play video games or use digital devices daily. Coach Jacob had it, and it contributed to his college throwing injuries.

  Here are a few ways you’re environment could affect your neck posture:
  – The headrest on the car (if you are in the driver’s seat, your headrest is usually more magnified)

  – Sleeping with too many pillows under your head

  – Looking down at the phone too much
  – Staring at the computer too closely
  – Too much load on the upper back, for instance, a backpack or a barbell.
  – Not having proper neck alignment in the first place & hitting a million baseballs looking down at the baseball tee will push your neck forward and forward.

  So, even if you’re a great athlete who moves well, you could have poor neck alignment. Because it takes maybe three hours of sleeping on a plane with the pushed-out headrest, and you’ll most likely wake up, and the crown of your head won’t be tall to the sky and decompressed. Do this, and your ears will be creeping forward a few centimeters if not inches. Now even if you had bought yourself enough freedom for three hours, sleeping with a forward neck headrest on a 10+ hr. plane ride would be difficult to wake up & not have a forward neck.
  So, based on their environment, anyone could have poor neck alignment at any given time. If you take a third-world indigenous hunter and gatherer and put them in a first-world environment, where they ride in cars and sit in chairs, eventually, their neck would start to creep forward out of proper alignment with the spine.
  But again, neck alignment can be fixed (depending on how severe) in minutes or less.

  All of that was mentioned above because this can apply to everyone. And having a few neck alignment exercises to pull out of your toolbox whenever you have a headache could be the cure.

  Many orthopedic doctors specializing in the neck and head will tell you that poor neck alignment can contribute to headaches. See, the nerves and blood vessels connected to the brain become squished when the neck isn’t stacked correctly. The more the neck and ears creep in front of the spine, the more the nerves and blood vessels become compressed. The pathway becomes limited from the brain and the heart when one has poor neck alignment. This is why doing neck exercises can restore the path for the blood vessels because post-exercise, the brain can get more blood, which is more oxygen for the brain.

  If you have constant headaches, many variables could factor in. Even the acidity of the water we drink could cause headaches. This would have to be another post, but we are a big fan of Stealth Detox Water! You can’t out-train a poor diet, so even nutrition can contribute to headaches. There are many factors, but neck alignment is a big one to keep in mind.

  Max Mover replied 1 year, 3 months ago 1 Member · 0 Replies
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