Tips for improving my neck endurance 😃?

Training
1

Just finished a 200km bike ride. 8 hours on the bike.

My legs held up, my stomach held up :rofl: but my neck really suffered.

I ride a Giant Revolt and am pretty comfortable with the fit - it’s a super relaxed geometry. 32” tubeless tires make the ride pretty comfortable.

I do a stretch, core and resistance band session twice a week. Lasts about 50 minutes. Stretch out everything, 2:30 of plank and a couple of other core exercises and then resistance band work for upper body specifically focusing on the neck and shoulder area.

Despite all this my neck definitely gives out way before anything else.

Open to suggestions on how to improve

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neck pain in endurance cyclists can have a plethora of reasons. I’d start with some exercises to strengthen the muscles in your neck and upper back. Also helps with posture if you’re sitting at a desk the whole day.

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Looks at your back, neck, head alignment when riding. You want them as aligned and relaxed as possible. You’ve likely got too much tension in them during the ride. Presume you plans to move on to the longer brevets?

4

If I can fix my neck, definitely! One chap I rode with had aero bars - looked like a good way to incorporate a different position from time to time.

5

Do you regularly do 8 hour rides?

As long as it’s just a little muscle soreness, I think it’s pretty reasonable to have a sore neck after a 200km ride, especially if I’ve tried to spend a decent amount of it in the drops or with flat forearms.

I don’t think specific neck conditioning is called for or warranted; you aren’t an f1 driver. If you have a postural problems off the bike, yoga always helps.

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6

Do some upper back as well as neck stuff.

I’ve noticed some neck fatigue if I do a ton of trainer rides over the winter and then immediately go into long outdoor rides. Adding a helmet adds a ton of fatigue.

But I think the biggest thing that helped was not looking straight ahead. You can have a tendency to want to pick you head up and look straight forward but that means your neck is extended for the whole ride. It really helps me to keep my head more in line with my back (so looking a little down) and then using my eyes to look upward.

7

Rock climbing, specifically belaying.

8

The four things that helped the most with this for me are:

  1. Aero bars. Being able to rest on your forearms does give some of your neck postural muscles a break too.
  2. Physiotherapy/athletic therapy. Self explanatory. Explain your issue to them then go from there.
  3. Increase riding volume long term. Your muscles get stronger from being on the bike longer every week.
  4. Formal bike fit from someone who knows what they’re doing, if not already done.
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9

8 hours is a long time.

Long-distance cyclists talk about something called Shermer’s Neck. I’m sure you’re not dealing with that, but if you google the term and look for papers that describe how to ‘treat’ it, the recommendations might help you.

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