2023 Live Q&A 4: Should you be doing direct neck strengthening exercises?

Should you do neck strengthening exercises? Barbell strength trainees often wonder if they should be incorporating more than just barbell training into their programs. Usually these questions boil down to whether or not small isolation exercises have any added benefit or not.   PRS Podcast Listener Question: The basic squat, bench press, overhead press, and deadlift are the core exercises for the barbell trainee and powerlifter.  How well do they add strength to the muscles that support the neck and head?  What are the best accessory exercises for adding strength to the neck?  How important is it to have strong muscles supporting the head?   In this episode of the PRS Podcast, Drs Rori Alter, PT and Alyssa Haveson, PT discuss how the neck musculature functions in everyday activities and how they are strengthened through the main barbell lifts.   They further discuss direct situations where people tend to add in accessory exercises for their necks and situations in where the neck experiences high velocity forces.   However, in most cases, the answer they recommend is that no additional neck accessory exercises are needed.      If you're enjoying our podcast, please leave us a review on Apple or Spotify.   Join our Facebook Community for free form checks, live Q&As & more: https://www.facebook.com/groups/PRS.Barbell.Mastery    Got questions or guests you'd like to hear on the show? Submit them here: https://forms.gle/7Vu2HmgHoeQY9xM59    Get in touch with the show! Web: https://www.progressiverehabandstrength.com Email: [email protected] Rori IG: @rorimegan_prs Alyssa IG: @alyssahope_prs