If your cat-cow stops at your shoulders and your neck remains still like a rigid tower, you’re cutting the movement short—and potentially inviting more neck strain.
Phelan notes that when the cervical spine (that’s your neck) isn’t included in the motion, it resists the flow of the rest of your spine. Instead of releasing tension, you might actually be creating more of it.
Her advice? “Let the movement travel all the way through the cervical spine,” she writes. That means your neck should follow the same natural curve as the rest of your back: tuck the chin when rounding, lift it gently when arching.
