Issue 034

February 2008

Many times in MMA training, you are not entirely in control of your own neck movement. If you are punched in the head, your neck needs to react in order to prevent your head being snapped back. You may have an opponent who is pulling on your head, or pushing it to one side. Then there’s the impact of driving it in to get the takedown.

To deal with this, your deep neck muscles need to be able to respond to external forces and to stabilize that section of your spine. This is another good exercise to include in your warm up.

1)   Kneel on all fours with your back and neck in a neutral position.

2)   Have a training partner gently push your head in different directions, while you aim to keep it as still as possible. Your training partner should aim to vary the timing and direction of the pushes so that they are unpredictable. Continue for around 20 pushes.

Any of the exercises demonstrated in this article should always be done after consultation with a GP, physiotherapist or similar healthcare professional.