Top Exercises for Headache Relief

Headaches are caused by a number of things, but muscle tension is a top culprit. Here are some easy moves that can bring you relief.

When your head hurts, it can be really hard to know what brought it on. Occasional or even chronic headaches can be caused by so many different things, including stress, viruses, dehydration, hunger, side effects from medicine, and poor sleep. But there’s another reason why they happen that you may not know: tight muscles in your neck and shoulders.

Most tension and migraine headaches are linked to neck pain, according to a study in Frontiers in Neurology. Sure, you can pop pain medicine for some relief, but the researchers noted that strategic exercises can help get rid of the immediate headache. They also can prevent future ones, since they train your neck muscles to relax more effectively.

One of the best ways to work the kinks out is with strength training. Another study in the Journal of Pain Research looked at the effectiveness of strength training on tension headaches. It found that it improves both pain levels and mobility in the neck and shoulders.

With that in mind, the exercises below are designed to both stretch and strengthen your neck and shoulder muscles. Use them whenever a headache pops up, but it’s an even better idea to add them into your daily routine to help prevent them from happening in the first place.

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How to Do the Exercises for Headache Relief

Be sure to get your doctor’s OK before beginning a new exercise program, especially if you have any chronic conditions like osteoporosis or arthritis. Also, if you frequently get headaches or if they’ve been getting worse over time, check with your doctor. Those things may be a symptom of another health problem.

You can do the moves below as a sequence, creating a set that can be repeated two or three times. Or you can focus on one move at a time—done slowly—to give your muscles a chance to warm up and relax.

Exercise #1: Chin Tuck

How to do it:

• While sitting tall in a chair (or standing), pull your chin straight back as if you’re trying to create a double chin.
• Hold this retracted position for 3 to 4 deep breaths and release, allowing your chin to move forward slightly. That’s 1 rep.
• Do 5 to 10 slow and controlled reps.

Exercise #2: Seated Cervical Rotation

How to do it:

• While sitting tall in a chair (or standing), place your right fingers on the right side of your chin.
• Gently push your head to your left shoulder.
• Hold for 10 seconds and release.
• Repeat in the opposite direction to complete one rep.
• Do 10 slow and controlled reps.

Exercise #3: Shoulder Squeeze

How to do it:

• Stand tall and pinch your shoulder blades together, allowing your chest to open up.
• Hold for 4 seconds and release. That’s one rep.
• Repeat for 10 slow and controlled reps total.

Recommended FREE SilverSneakers On-Demand Class: Movements and Breathing Exercises for Headache Relief

Exercise #4: Ear-to-Shoulder Neck Release

How to do it:

• Sit tall in a chair with your feet flat on the floor. Let your arms hang at your sides with your shoulders down and relaxed.
• Without rotating your head, drop one ear toward that side’s shoulder. Go as far as you can without straining or lifting your shoulder.
• Hold for 10 seconds, taking slow, deep breaths.
• Switch sides and repeat.
• Next, repeat the movement, but this time, use your palm to gently guide your head.
• Hold for 10 seconds.
• Switch sides and repeat.

Exercise #5: Shoulder Rolls (seated or standing)

How to do it:

• Stand or sit tall and slowly make circles with your shoulders.
• Be very deliberate about hitting every part of the circle.
• Complete 10 reps.
• Reverse the direction for another 10 reps.

See our sources:
Causes of headaches: Stanford Medicine
Headaches and neck pain: Frontiers in Neurology
Strength training and headache relief: Journal of Pain Research 

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