macedo84 wrote:
thanks guys, any hints or tips on neck conditioning

Here's a simple exercise I do every other night before bed:

Lie chest down on a medicine ball or the end of your bed with your neck hanging over the end. Look up x 20 times. Then Lie back down and look down x 20 times. Repeat for a total of 3 sets chest and back down.

Hope this helps!

people with a bad guard on their feet better have chins of granite

Richard wrote:
The largest OVERLOOKED aspect of stand-up training is the strengthening of the neck. A neck injury is incredibly serious, and can end a career or life. That being said, a guy with a really strong neck is next to impossible to knock out. Furthermore, a strong neck is very difficult to neck crank, and also hard to choke. This being said, I would suggest doing a LOT of neck conditioning, and you will be surprised how much it helps your entire game.

Couldn't agree more. A strong neck helps in all contact sports where your head might get jarred. It is really the only safe way to train yourself to withstand blows to the head. Taking repeated blows to the head will make your MORE not LESS susceptible to knockout in the long run.

Halfbreed83 wrote:
macedo84 wrote:
thanks guys, any hints or tips on neck conditioning

Here's a simple exercise I do every other night before bed:

Lie chest down on a medicine ball or the end of your bed with your neck hanging over the end. Look up x 20 times. Then Lie back down and look down x 20 times. Repeat for a total of 3 sets chest and back down.

Hope this helps!

You also should do this on your side, letting your head fully tilt down bringing your ear to your shoulder. As well, you will want to sit or stand and use your hand to apply resistance to the side of your face turning your head as far to the side as possible, then use your neck muscles to push against your hand and turn fully the other way.

There are three angles for head movement: up and down (like nodding), side to side (like shaking your head 'no' and tilting ear to shoulder (like trying to get water out of your ear). It is best not to neglect any of these angles to fully develop your neck muscles.

Get a 24 inch hunk of 1 inch nylon rope. Loop one ens and knot the other. You can run the knotted end through the loop to make a slip knot like a lariat. Cinch this around a dumbell or through a plate and you have my numero uno favorite neck weight. Just bite down on the tag end and start nodding. This not only stregnthens the neck but improves jaw stregnth. Jaw stregnth is a big deal for guys getting tagged on the chin alot. If you can bear down on your mouthpiece and not allow a hit to knock your jaw around. You are in good shape.

Man, that is hardcore!

Yes a stable jaw is a big plus - since you can be knocked out when your jaw is moved by a sudden jolt, even if your whole head doesn't move much.